Flora Riddle 1
by Mrs Borgin
Summary: This fic tells the Flora Riddle's,story. Flora, Bellatrix and Voldemort's daughter, is a powerful witch that was brought up by Muggles without her parents' knowledge. Lucius Malfoy finds her whereabouts...
1. The coldest day of the year

Note: This story was written in Portuguese, translated into English by Roger Migliorini & Ivana R., and its grammar was revised and corrected by Alicia.(10-11-2012), By the way: This story is based on the Harry Potter series created by JK Rowling and was published into others sites: snitchseeker and contosdasmasmorras. I hope you enjoy it and let me know what you think about... I love comments!

THE COLDEST DAY OF THE YEAR

It would be a day like any other one in Flora's life – a psychologist, married with three children –, if it were not for the sudden cold that had came to town during the night, and along with this, the news that her friend and co-worker had died.

Getting out of bed and picking up an outfit for the funeral seemed impossible. The previous day they had met briefly at the clinic and her friend seemed perfectly well, as Flora remembered while opening the window to check the weather conditions as if she did not know that the day dawned cold. Her indecision about the clothes she should wear was linked to her refusal to believe everything was real; and she knew it. She did not want to dress just as she did not want to leave home. The city looked totally unrecognizable in shades of gray and the fog that invaded her room, filled her lungs with inevitable icy reality. She closed the window without even noticing the approach of a dark figure. She shuddered and was deeply distressed. Then, she closed the curtains - the graceful and flowery curtains that her daughter had insisted on buying. That remembrance gave her a momentary joy. She did not notice, but the dark figure turned away out there. That off-season cold and the fog that covered the city made her feel as if she would never be happy in life again. "No, it was probably only related to the circumstances. This has nothing to do with the weather", thought Flora.

She went to the funeral with her husband, Felipe, a tall and handsome man with dark hair and very pale skin - she loved him very much, but never commented on how handsome he looked to her just for him not to put on airs. As they walked side by side, hand in hand, Flora struggled to crack a smile for him. She usually was a very good-humoured person; nevertheless her good mood had vanished when she came out of bed to grab a blanket during the night, even before she received the sad news, she was devastated and feeling awkward. She was distant and barely paid attention to what she did or said, and greeted friends and strangers with sorrow.

She kept thinking the foggy day made her feel quite upset. "No, that wasn't it", she reasoned, "but the situation". She leaned against her husband and forced herself to move on. Flora and Felipe came near the place where the burial would take place, getting a little behind the small crowd that had come to say goodbye, then, the final honours began. They were in the old cemetery in downtown, while the cold bit her lightly on the cheek, she idled away looking at the sculptures on the graves that had always fascinated her, especially the one of the young bride leaning over the grave of her beloved one, and it caused a big knot in her chest, so shetightened her hold on her husband's hand. Her attention also floated from one ancient tree to another. Then, she noticed two men gazing at her with an unusual interest. At first, she thought she was ill-dressed or something of the sort because no matter how hard she tried, her way of dressing always disagreed with her peers. Then, she pretended her attention was drawn to something else while she examined the men, and realized she had never seen them before.

One of them was tall, blond, had a very pale skin, and looked about 50. She was under the impression that he watched her with a certain reverence. The other one, who was accompanying him, was much younger. This one was stoutly built, looked evil, and had black hair cut very short. They dressed as if they were not from the city. Actually, they seemed foreigners. They neither spoke, among themselves, nor greeted the relatives of the deceased woman. They seemed to be there just because of Flora. "No, I'm imagining things again" Flora thought, dismissing her own perception.

It was becoming increasingly difficult for Flora to pay attention to what was happening and for a moment she had the feeling that a strange force was trying to control her actions and make her follow that old man. She shook her head as if to wave these thoughts aside. The feeling passed. The man seemed to smile as he looked at her briefly and Flora looked immediately away from him in response. However, she saw a tall, hooded figure in a dark cloak slipping between the graves. Then, she glimpsed a brightness that seemed to come from under the blond man's cloak, and the figure moved away. What was that? Certainly she was imagining things. Those men should be relatives or friends of the deceased woman and she, Flora, was too shaken, bordering on madness, perhaps, and _had seen_ Death in person; or rather thought so. She shook her head again as if it could give back the reason into her mind. Anyway, she needed a holiday: it was certainly that, she concluded.

At the end of the funeral, it began drizzling. She left the cemetery leaning even more heavily against her husband, nearly being carried by him. She was trembling, not knowing whether it was because of the icy drops falling down hers neck or the nervousness increasing inside her. In the street, she saw those sinister figures again. Then, she decided to face them with a stare - knowing it put people off sometimes. She looked in the eyes of the blond man so strongly that she believed his legs would give away**.**He staggered and whispered satisfied to the other: 'It's her'. This makes her even more scared**.**

On their way back to the car, she realized her husband had not noticed anything which left her with the feeling that everything was just fruit of her imagination. Even though she thought that she hadbetter walk faster and justified it by telling him that she needed a rest.

And what if she was really imagining things? Would her mind be wavering? She shook her head once more undoing the bun on top of her head and dropping her long, black curly hair on her back and saw her reflection in the window of a car. Not only she looked paler than normal, but also her eyes seemed to have faded a bit in the last hour. "Perhaps the autumn leaves had changed colour" she thought, since she used to say that her eyes were their colour: something between dark green, brown, yellow and gray. And diving into her thoughts, she snuggled up onto her husband's arms while they drove home in silence.


	2. Mr Malfoy

MR. MALFOY

Next morning, it seemed as if nothing had happened; even the tropical sun came out in its total strength. Flora forced herself into going to work, as some of her patients were going through a crisis and couldn't miss a week of their treatment – she tried to justify herself while she knew, in fact, that it was not true and she needed something else to occupy her thoughts to be able to resume her normal life. She was confused and did not want to feel all that pain for a few moments at least.

She drove her car through the city in "automatic mode" (without pay attention) and soon came to her office, which was a simple chamber, in the backroom of a nice clinic. It was good enough for her, as the success of her work didn't rest in the furniture.

She worked the whole day, but took small breaks to take the children to school or to fetch them from it, have lunch, or go to the supermarket. The intense routine made her forget the gloomy experience she'd had in the cemetery.

Although she was feeling well, during the coffee break she remembered her co-worker had showed a permanent smile and had suggested that she drink water instead of coffee since it was healthier. Her death was a mystery, since not even the medical examiner had been able to ascertain its causes. The deceased woman just seemed to have given up life and "shut down". Thoughtfully, Flora left the coffee cup aside and poured herself a large glass of water and realized she would miss her friend for a long time. Then she resumed her work, there were still three patients to go.

Time passed but she didn't notice it. After the end of the working day, she was alone at her office once her last patient had left. Then suddenly she felt a gust of icy wind blow into the office. Immediately after that the doorbell rung – she thought this was weird since she wasn't waiting for anyone. Perhaps it was the night guard checking why the lights were on. To her surprise, when she opened the door she found the blonde man from the previous day. He gave her his hand, half smiled, and said:

'Dr Flora? I am Lucius Malfoy.'

Flora shuddered with fear and reacted by looking back at him with the same fixed stare of the previous day, trying to intimidate him, after all**,** she was alone and he was an unknown man. She knew her stare had a devastating effect on people, and she used it sometimes to get into her patients' minds to help them whenever the normal procedures didn't work. It was the way through which she could access their most hidden thoughts and forgotten memories. It disturbed Mr. Malfoy for a few seconds, but he didn't seem to want to avoid it. Actually, he seemed to understand it and wished that invasion of privacy. Flora saw from his remembrances that he had come from far away to meet her. He had learnt about her through a document, and she understood he wouldn't do her any harm. When she tried to access his memories a bit further, she saw a woman with her hair as black as Flora's, and also a very awkward looking man with a snake-like face. But then, Lucius deflected her gaze.

Flora believed that words of her successful work had reached him and that is why he was there. She concluded that because of the strange looking persons wearing unusual costumes she had seen in that gentleman's memories. They seemed to have some kind of madness or dementia.

Curious, she invited Lucius in and took him to her office, where she indicated an armchair for him to sit. Fortunately she was fluent in English, as well as her family, so she excused herself, grabbed the mobile in her purse, and with her back turned to man, called her husband to tell him that a last minute appointment had just turned up. If she did not arrive home in an hour, he should come and look for her, but otherwise he should not worry, as all was well, she completed quickly, but she was not sure whether this had indeed reassured Felipe.

She fetched them coffee and asked what had brought Mr. Malfoy there. He explained that he believed she was Tom Riddle and his sister-in-law Bellatrix Lestrange's daughter that had been adopted soon after her birth by a Brazilian family visiting England.

Flora had been told she was adopted and brought from Europe when she was still a baby, even so she got surprised at the unexpected revelation of her parents names, so she paid great attention to the story. She had her heart in her throat, but took a deep breath to collect herself as she didn't want him to note how moved she was. Pretending to be calm, she asked him to continue.

As far as she could understand, the Lestranges worked for this Mr. Riddle, a Lord. And after years serving and blindly admiring this man, Bellatrix's husband becamemore and more uninteresting for her.

He went on claiming that she had been put up for adoption on Mr. Lestrange's order, the betrayed husband that, in spite of his rage for the baby girl – that was a live proof of his wife's betrayal – couldn't kill her for both fear and admiration for her father. Mr Lestrange had no difficulty in lying to his wife, since the baby was premature and the mother had lost consciousness during the childbirth, so he said to her that their daughter had been born dead. Moreover, he also said that the baby's birth mother didn't want the little girl, as she believed the baby to be her husband's, so she did not want to see the dead child anymore, which facilitated the lie.

Mr Malfoy told her that many years had passed and no one in the family knew Flora existed. Then, one day, Bellatrix's sister and Mr. Malfoy's wife, Narcissa, read a document written by an old family servant that had been found by her grandson, Scorpius. Flora had the impression that Mr. Malfoy implied this servant was a home elf, but imagined she had misunderstood him. It was certainly owing to her difficulty with English. To better understand that, he let her peer into his mind again. Actually, he seemed to wish she did that again. Then, in a large and stylish living-room, she saw a blonde and tall woman showing old and stained papers to her husband.

By seeing how Narcissa told her husband the history that, in turn, her grandson had told her, Flora noted that this servant, Dobby, was greatly despised, although again he was referred to as an elf. "Would 'elf' be just a derogatory term?" thought Flora.

'_Dobby, that useless and traitor elf, hid a stack of old papers made of newspapers and bread wrappers, which were tied up by a knot with a magical look. In these papers — see, I didn't even know the bloody elf could write —, he wrote, in an awful writing, things he saw in our home, and some others he did on our orders. If the Ministry just got hold of these papers…'_

'_How did you find them?'_

'_Scorpius gave me that. He was playing in the cellar when, without any particular purpose, he did a magic spell that revealed a path in the wall. He followed that path and got to Dobby's dirty room. I didn't even know there was such a filthy place in our house. It had a tiny bed, and horrible flowers were drawn in its walls. __Scorpius's__ intent was to use it as his secret hiding place to meditate __and__ try his magic powers away from us. He's so smart! However he made the wrong magic and instead of enlarging the piece of pie he had in his pocket, he made the paper wrapping appear. What a disgusting habit of registering his memories the bloody elf had – as if they were worth anything... Anyway, Scorpius found them very interesting. So, he ended up getting late for lunch and I went to look for him... But that's not the worst. Have a look for yourself'._

_Narcissa reached over and handed the sheets to her husband. Disgusted, Mr. Malfoy started reading the papers, but something __caught__ his attention and soon he went on reading them carefully__, sitting__ in an armchair by the window to be helped by the light that came from outside. The revelation about a niece he'd never heard about excited him, so that he muttered now and then:_

'_Bellatrix and Lord Voldemort... Brazilian family bewitched … their holiday trip was meant for them to take home the daughter they would adopt. Mmm... Interesting ...'._

_He smiled. Narcissa noted a glint in her husband's eyes. It was as if he had just won the best present in his life. She got weary when he announced:_

'_I'm going to Brazil. We must know if she's still alive...'_

_After writing some messages and asking his wife to send them off__,__ Mr. Malfoy said he would pack. Narcissa climbed the winding marble stairs behind him going to the bedroom. Then he said to her that he knew he could not count on his son, Draco, that preferred living in the past as if nothing had ever happened; so, since Lord Voldemort's death he would not approve of anything like that. Therefore, Mr. Malfoy would ask to an old friend's son, Goyle to go with him. Goyle was stupid and strong enough to accompany him in any mission. Flora could still see Mr. Malfoy__,__ accompanied by a man she recognized as the one that was with him at the cemetery. At first, they were not coming to Brazil, though; instead they were going up north or, at least, that was what he had told Goyle. At this moment he turned his eyes away from her as not to let her see anything anymore._

Flora focused back to reality; she could hardly hide her shock. But nothing was compared to what Mr. Malfoy was about to tell her: He first asked her in a paused voice whether she had ever done anything strange in her life; something that other persons could not do. She did not reply then, but she knew she had. In fact, she had always done strange things although she had never mentioned that to anybody except to her husband, to her deceased friend, and to two of her girl friends that _also had __done __something __strange__._

Then, the man took a wooden wand from his stick, pointed it to a picture in the wall, and the image in it started to move. Flora took a deep breath. She knew it couldn't be a trick, since that picture had hung from that wall since long, and he couldn't have had anytime to set the scene. At that, she nodded with her head: yes, she had already done many strange things. He asked her what she had done, and she replied that the strangest thing she had ever done was during a family camp, when she prevented a coral snake from leaping at them by simply talking to it. The man's eyes glinted again, as if he had just met Santa Claus himself. Then he asked her whether she had felt anything strange in the cemetery. She replied encouraged by the enthusiasm with the news and leaving aside the caution that she had felt as if something wanted to command her, but she had managed to regain control over herself and deflect that sensation.

He clapped and said:

'It was me! I tried to cast the Imperius Curse on you, and you resisted! You're a witch, and like your father, one of the most powerful ones I've ever met. You have the same, let's say, penetrating stare he had. It means he was a great Legilemens just as you' – and the admiring and venerating way Lucius looked at her deeply annoyed her.

To be called a witch was not a compliment, but she already knew that she was a witch. She had always known that, but had never dared use the word "witch" to justify her powers; even for her witches were just _the evil_ characters of children's tales. She also knew thatin a certain way, there was evil inside her. Evil drives had always haunted her. However, she had learned to control them and didn't have any unethical behaviour since she blew up a frog that had frightened her when she was a child ("who did she think she was to ill-treat the poor animal?"). She smiled to the man and agreed: 'ok, you got me'.

She could not take her eyes off his wand-stick as she'd never had seen anything like that. For her, magic wands were only found in fairy tales. She went to touch it, but Lucius dodged her movement. He said it was a personal object and that she could buy one in London for herself. (Flora naturally did not know that, but since he was compelled to lend his wand to another wizard – Lord Voldemort, Flora's father – and it had been broken, he never ever let anybody else touch his new wand again as if it were a very sensitive part of his body).

'Magic wands in London? How nice? Can you find them on any corner?'

'No, there's a particular place to buy it. It's not on_Google maps._' Flora did not notice, but this time Mr Malfoy could not hide his lips wrinkling in contempt by mentioning this Muggle resource: the internet. He continued.'It's the Ollivander's in Diagon Alley. Muggles aren't allowed there, unless they're accompanied by wizarding folk. By Muggles I mean, ordinary persons without magic powers. Over there you can also buy books to help you deal with your magic and learn how to better use it.' answered Mr. Malfoy forcing himself into being friendly, which wasn't much like him, and which Flora did not notice due to her enormous excitement at the idea of meeting her parents, developing her magic powers and buying magic things.

This immediately fascinated her as she had never seen a serious spell book before. The closest she'd got to it were old books of herbal medicine. She noted then that whenever she tried their prescriptions, she usually achieved a much better result than her friends, even if they had followed the same instructions. And for a few moments she was lost in daydreams, imagining herself wearing a black cloak and a witch's pointy hat, with her children in a wizarding department store buying golden spell-books and exotic objects, including cauldrons and broomsticks. Then it occurred to her to ask:

'Do my parents live in London? I've wanted to meet them since I was a little girl, and learned I had been adopted.'

Mr. Malfoy sorrowfully said:

'I'm afraid your parents have already passed away.'

Flora lost the enthusiasm and muscle tone and felt like she would sink into the chair. That meant she would never ever meet her parents. She lowered her eyes, looking at something in her bare hands and her eyes began to fill with tears. Her uncle waited for a moment and finally asked her:

'But whenever you like, I can show you our world. I'm going back tomorrow, but I'll leave you my address. Your aunt, my wife, would love to meet her niece. So would my son.'

At these last words, Flora noticed the forced amiability. However, she was curious and deep down she knew she would accept his invitation, at least she would know part of her family and her people. Mr Malfoy stood up. Flora was still trying to assimilate everything he had told, so it took her a bit to realize that he was leaving. Then she tried to smile at him, got up and followed him to the exit, where they said goodbye, and she thanked her uncle for his visit. She returned to her office and collapsed onto her lilac armchair, where she remained for a few minutes, looking once again to her empty hands. She would never know who gave her those long and pale like the moon pianist's fingers... Then her father was a wizard, and just as she, he could read minds. She needed to tell all that to Felipe. Felipe! Suddenly she remembered that her husband was waiting for her, so she quickly grabbed her purse and put on her coat while turning off the lights and closing the clinic. Flora got to the street in a few moments and soon was in her car. She could barely breathe due to her enormous distress. By remaking the talk with Mr. Malfoy, the idea that she was really a witch was contaminating her with euphoria.

Numb and lost in her own thoughts, Flora drifted home. When she got there, she met her husband at the door-step, holding the car key.

'Who was the last-minute patient? The children were already asleep, so I hesitated to go, but I was worried about you ...'

'Oh, love ...' Flora said, looking fondly at her husband. She hugged him. As he knew her very well though, he soon realized by the change in her attitude that she was excited and euphoric.

'Did you notice that blonde gentleman at Sophia's burial?'

'I can't remember very well ... Who was he? What did he want? You were late; I was worried.'

Then she took the key from him and pulled him by the hand into the house, excited. She sighed and said with her voice slightly sharpened because of the excitement:

'Felipe, he _is_ my uncle! Well, actually he's married to my birth mother's sister ... Oh, Felipe ...' Flora said, lowering her voice and looking at the floor 'my parents have passed away ...' She paused briefly, he hugged her stronger. She wept, wetting her husband's clothes with her tears. Learning of her parents' death, she felt alone as she had never felt in her whole life. After all they were parents with whom she dreamed of for her entire life, parents who never would know the colour of her eyes, or how she was a good mother and a generous person, parents who never would feel proud of her as her Brazilians parents did... To think about her Brazilians parents calmed her down. She sniffled and continued, getting excited again: 'and what would you say if I told you there're others like us, and that there's even a kind of shopping mall for 'witches' and 'wizards'?'

She smiled and her eyes shone when she said the words 'witches' and 'wizards'. Her husband was one of the few to understand her nature, as he was somewhat_ strange, _or_ a wizard himself, _since he, as a computing teacher, had power over broken down electronic devices that always started to work again with his 'magic' touch. These things were not normally mentioned, not even to her _witch_ friends. Nevertheless, either as witch and wizard, neither Flora nor her husband had ever heard of any true instruction books meant to help them tame their power. So every spell book they had read till then had been but a fraud. Felipe raised an eyebrow. Flora tried to explain:

'Well, my uncle told me there's a true magic world... And said I'm his sister-in-law's daughter, born from an off-the-wedding love affair, a mess that her husband found out. So, he told his wife I had been born dead, and ordered a servant to put me for adoption. As far as I could understand, my father was a kind of Lord and my mother worked for him. Both were wizarding people. Ah! Do you know those magic wands found in fairy tales? They're real. I've see one of 'em!'

Her husband put a hand on her forehead to check her temperature... It seemed normal. He looked his wife deep in the eyes and asked:

'Have you drunk anything? Is this all true indeed?'

She smiled:

'Of course. Why would we be the only ones? Nevertheless, my uncle's a bit sinister... What do you think about all of this, honey?' And she went on talking on and on in such a way that her husband could not get to his own conclusions.

Felipe tried to be rational and calm down his wife. He invited her to take a lemon balm tea (to calm the nerves), while they discussed the subject. Flora accepted it and they went to the kitchen. Felipe asked her to tell the story from the beginning so that he could understand it better. Felipe was also curious about Mr. Malfoy talk, and when she finally finished her narrative they both agreed it would be interesting to check it. However, her uncle's spite for Dobby and the natural way he talked about killing a baby made them believe he may not be a good person. Therefore, she would go to London by herself, this way they would spare their kids from being seen by those people until both of them were sure they would not offer them any danger. Besides, she had not mentioned anything about her daughter and sons to Mr. Malfoy, Therefore, her travel would move these people's focus from their family, and keep it just on her.


	3. The trip

THE TRIP

Flora rang her uncle up the following week and asked him whether his invitation was still standing. Unable to hide his excitement, he replied that yes, he was waiting for her.

Her feelings were as confused as they could be. On the one hand she was very excited with the possibility of getting to know the magical world, a world that also belonged to her family and herself although they had been totally unaware of it till then. But on the other hand, she was also scared because she suspected there was something very sinister involving Mr. Malfoy. She felt that, from what she had grasped from his recollections about the elf meant little compared to the potential evil in him. But she was sure she could stand up to whatever he would present her. She felt as if she could fight it, although this might be pure naivety.

The trip to London was all right, being that the flight that was smooth and fluid as her thoughts. At the airport her uncle and aunt, who were a smartly dressed couple with dark clothes, were already waiting for her. For a moment she felt she could be ill-clothed but tried to compensate it with a very upward posture through which she tried to show she was very self-assured. This seemed to work, because they did not express any displeasure at seeing her, quite the contrary; her aunt hugged her and smiled, although she seemed sad:

"You have my sister's build. You don't quite look like her, though, as you're much prettier. However, if I had looked at your shadow, I would've said it was Bella who had arrived. Nice to meet you, I'm Narcissa Malfoy."

Her apparently cordial and friendly speech hid fears that Flora could not understand at the moment. Flora had the impression that her expression was more than missing her sister; it seemed in fact, that Narcissa had feared Bellatrix.

Mr. Malfoy came forth and took her luggage; a behaviour that was not compatible with his arrogant way of being. Flora noticed it, but did not say anything. She looked at her aunt and uncle with affection while following them through the crowded airport.

In the parking lot, they got in a posh car. In their way, her hosts, just like tour guides, explained whatever they would pass on their way. They looked kind of awkward, as if they did not know what to talk to her about.

An hour later, they arrived at the Malfoy Manor, 'a place of much fanfare and little joy,' noticed Flora without commenting anything. She was so impressed as asked in thought, who would be those people, the Malfoys? Would this house belong to her father, the lord Riddle? Or would he have been even richer than Malfoys were? If Lestranges' were like Malfoys and they worked or served the Riddle, he should be millionaire... She did not dare ask or say anything as she did not want them to think she was interested in their money, she was just curious.

Mrs. Malfoy said she had invited over her son Draco, his wife and son to have dinner with them. Her purpose was to introduce Flora to Draco and his family. Flora went to take a rest in the guest room until dinner, on second floor of the manor, which should be at least five times greater than her own home.

Breathless with excitement and trying to absorb all the information gathered up to that moment, Flora rang her husband up to tell him where she was. She also did it as a precaution to activate the cell phone finder (which sent her husband via the internet, her exact location). After taking a shower and dressing herself to dinner, she began undoing her bags when she heard the sound of a discussion that was coming from the other side of the house. Draco Malfoy had arrived. The sound attracted her like a magnet. Uncertain of what to do but very curious because she had noticed that _she_ was the subject of the discussion, Flora hesitated in the doorway for a moment before going down the stairs. They were still in the entrance hall, she noted from her hideout in the darkness of the hallway. They, on the contrary, did not notice her, as they had their backs to her.

'Why did you bring her here, Dad? Haven't we already given up old habits? Why put the family at risk? Do you really know who she is? My mark is tingling, father, it can't be good.'

Then, Draco showed his father his black mark now visible again. It was kind of a magic tattoo with a skull and a snake going through it. Draco's father also showed his son his own mark and said:

'Isn't it wonderful? My mark has also come back! She's got the power, son! And as we've found her, we will be rewarded. Listen to what I'm telling you.'

Flora, who couldn't contain her curiosity to see the marks, caught both of them by surprise when she got silently in the living-room and disguising her anxious voice, however she was betrayed by the movements of her chest rising and falling rapidly:

'Excuse me. I hope not to be disturbing you both.'

Draco took a deep breath, lowered his eyes and resigned, introduced himself stretching out his hand to greet her. She noted that when she tried to look at him in the eyes, he looked away. After a short while, he excused himself and said he would have to leave because he had got an urgent call from work. Nevertheless, he promised her they would meet at another time. He had come alone, having left his family at home. She noticed that and considered it very interesting. Her uncle apologized to her for his son's behaviour, saying that sometimes he gave more importance to the work than to the family. Then he smiled at her, and offered his arm to escort her to the dining room. Flora accepted the gesture and said they would still have time to get to know each other, there was no hurry.

The dining-room was somewhat oppressive with its huge table and dark furniture, as well as the long corridors they passed, with their high ceiling and formal wallpapers. That table seemed to have a sinister vibe in the wood as if there had been more than family dinners in that room. The table set for six persons was quickly rearranged by magic to accommodate the remaining three. While Flora was still standing beside a chair, she closely watched her aunt do agile movements with her wand, she repeated them mentally. Lucius came out through a side door, saying he would choose a good wine:

'Sorry, I forgot that you are not used to using the wand. We need to take you to Diagon Alley for you to purchase one. Mr. Ollivander passed all his knowledge on to his nephew that seems to have even more dexterity than him in making magic wands. I wonder whatit's like to be an adult witch without any basic knowledge of magic. It's almost like being a Muggle!'

Flora was uncomfortable with Narcissa's comment; she lowered her head and looked at her bare hands, taking a long breath. Her aunt realized it and tried to fix her remark.

'You surely don't know what is to be a Muggle... Muggles; well…They're the people without magic powers. But of course, being the daughter of who you are, you'd never be like a Muggle, ain't it so? You must have developed a natural technique to let out the magic that flows within you. Oh, sit down, dear.'

The aunt said pulling a chair for herself and gesturing towards the chair in front of her niece, smiling slightly. Flora sat upright, smoothing her clothes, sheepish. Narcissa smiled at her again, while examining her manner - which made her even more uncomfortable. Finally Flora decided to relax and continue talking. For no use she pretended an elegance to resemble her aunt, they were clearly very different. Flora finally agreed and told her aunt a little about how she used it to get into the mind of her patients to help them better understand their own problems. Her aunt was delighted and exclaimed, looking at her husband who had just returned and was sitting down while cleaning a dusty bottle with a white napkin:

'Legilimens!'

'Just as her father.' Added Malfoy nodding satisfied.

Her aunt's eyes could not disguise the horror that her husband's comment caused on her. She swallowed; however, her tone of voice did not change, as if they were just chattering away

Flora pretended not to notice it and asked them about her mother. She wondered how and who she was.

'Oh, sure... Bella...' Narcissa's eyes lost focus for a moment, then she raised her eyebrows, and gazed intently at Flora, examining her features as she spoke:

'Your mother was beautiful, though one could say that she was not impressive in comparison to you. She wasn't a very kind person, was a person who was - practical - so to speak ... But she was very dedicated and very loyal ... However, not to her husband, as we now know.' Narcissa giggled.

'And my father?'

Lucius smiled broadly, his eyes sparkling with excitement. He replied proudly, as he served her the wine:

'Your father was a great man. Very dedicated and committed to defend our world from any threat. He was a great wizard, very intelligent and powerful.' Lucius excitedly said.

'Did they ever suspect of my existence?' Flora ventured.

Narcissa said with a submissively look at her husband, as if asking for his approval:

'We don't think so. He was too absorbed in fighting for our cause, so fatherhood was the last thing he would dream of... And my sister believed that you had been born dead ... Don't think about it dear. The important thing is that you are here and that tomorrow we are going to take you to Diagon Alley to show you a little more about our world; and to do some shopping as well. I believe you want to get some magical objects, don't you?'

'Oh, yes. Nevertheless, I haven't brought much money with me this time ...' Flora replied.

'Don't worry about it, honey. Your mother left a good inheritance for you in Gringotts, the wizarding bank. Nobody could access it because the bank vaults only allow withdrawals from their owners. We found it strange in the beginning, because if Lestrange had no heirs as we thought he didn't, Draco should have access to the money. As it didn't happen, we started to believe that my brother-in-law might have a bastard child. We'd never imagined it was Bellatrix instead.'

So, that was it, Flora thought. The fear that had rounded her went away, since now she believed that the Malfoys sought her in order to access her mother's legacy. For that matter, she had no intention of keeping any money. She would give everything to her aunt and would have nothing else to do with these people. However, she immediately got sorry about having had this thought: her aunt was being so kind. She did not seem as nearly as sinister as Mr. Malfoy. With half a smile on her face, Flora excused herself:

'Well, then tomorrow we go shopping ... Now I'm going to sleep. I'm tired.'

Flora left the room and went to her bedroom.

In her room, Flora could not sleep because of her great excitement. She looked through the window at the beautiful garden outside. Nothing moved in the breezeless night. She started to seek something in the room that could amuse her. Perhaps a book to read. In a small trunk which she found ajar, some old school books with Draco's name on the back cover. Her eyes twinkled when she saw they were witchcraft books. She got _The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1)_ by Miranda Goshawk and started reading it while still walking about the room with the purple nightdress dragging on the ground. She mentally imagined the wand movements described there, trying to get everything. At first, she did not see much use for some of the spells found in it, like spells to levitate objects; to give a shoe lace; to enlarge an object, and so on. Still, she had fun imitating the gestures described there with the imaginary wand in her hand. She sat on her bed a few hours later, without taking her eyes off the book. Still holding the book and sitting on the bed, she fell asleep when the sun was almost rising.


	4. At last the true

4. At last the true

Next morning was calm and it took Flora some time to remember that everything that had happened in the recent days was true. In fact, she really was in her aunt and uncle's house in a London suburb. Her body was aching because of the awkward night-sleep. She stood up and stretched slowly like a cat. Through the window, she admired the size of the garden. It seemed odd to her that those wealthy persons could be interested in more money. She gave a big yawn. Then, it occurred to her that they could have lost everything, and that the wealthy world they lived in was a fake one, as this happened with some frequency in Brazil.

She dressed slowly with a light clothing, although was still thinking it would a bit of heat, since the previous day had been rather sultry. She did not hear any noise from the house, and then assumed that the uncles were still asleep. So Flora thought it best to wait in the room until they called her. While sending 'so far, so good' messages to her husband through her Smartphone, somebody knocked on the door. It was her aunt calling her for breakfast.

They went downstairs to a room closer to the kitchen than the dinning-room of the previous night. It also looked lighter than the dinning-room, since its furniture was painted in clearer colours. Therefore, it was better suited for a breakfast. She laughed at herself for noticing that.

Her aunt told that her uncle had left early because of business matters. Then, the ladies would go to Diagon Alley, bank, and shops by themselves Narcissa smiled and Flora smiled in response. While eating a slice of toast with honey, Flora asked, curiously and apprehensive, how they would go to Diagon Alley, just imagining the two of them mounted on broomsticks. Narcissa said:

"There are Several means of transport, but this time we'll go by car , because I'm afraid you're not used to them and you might get a little sick. Is it alright for you, dear?"

Flora nodded and returned to the room to get her handbag, while her aunt waited in the hall. After a little trip and a lot of chattering away, they got to the Leaky Caldron in London. It was an uncared and dark pub. A metal plate hung in its facade. The image of a witch stirring something in a leaked caldron was engraved in it. Flora marvelled at the plate. She would like to have one in her house, perhaps in the kitchen. The barman nodded his head greeting Mrs. Malfoy and looked at Flora with a curious look. Flora nodded in return before going with her aunt to the back of the bar. Once in there, her aunt opened a portal in the wall with her wand by lightly touching the bricks. Startled, Flora understood she was in the famous Diagon Alley, a sinuous and narrow street, with shops on both sides, and packed with persons dressed like... like her! She was astonished at seeing that wizarding people don't adopt Muggles' fashion. She must have inherited it genetically as she never understood all those different looks or the purpose of matching so many different colours. So, she always opted for something more sensible.

The two women walked side by side, Narcissa showed the stores to Flora while she told to her niece what might be found in each of them in a very formal and polite way. The day was pleasantly warm and sunny, there was a slight breeze cooling the surroundings, which seemed a little different than it was a few yards away, before entering the bar, but Flora saw no fan or something like that. While walking, she noted thatit would be an ordinary business street if the shops didn't sell the oddest goods, as one could see from the signs in front of them. Flora, wondering at all that, said to her aunt that she didn't know what to do first. Her aunt smiled and suggested that they should start in the bank to enjoy the shopping later on with money in their purses.

The Gringotts Bank stood majestically at the end of the street. It was a mighty building that didn't look at all like the other ones. Flora's aunt warned her niece not to feel unease in the presence of the bank workers, since they were goblins.

"Try to behave naturally and all will be well."

After walking all the way through the alley, certainly, nothing else could astonish her. Flora thought, and she would not be at all surprised with the bank goblins.

After went up a big white marble staircase, they entered the bank through two huge doors that were guarded by goblins - ugly little men, dressed in red and gold uniform, who barely looked at the two witches as they passed, as noted Flora . The doors opened into a large hall where there were hundreds of these ugly little men at working, serving wizards and witches with exotic looks. Few seemed to notice their entry. Flora thought the Gringotts looked very similar to a Swiss bank, even though she had never entered one before. Distracted she looked in all directions when, shortly at the entrance a goblin come to meet them, and gave her a mistrustful look; he then asked Mrs. Malfoy whether she would do any withdrawal.

"No, thanks I'm only helping Mrs. Flora, my niece. She is the one that is going to do a withdrawal from my sister's vault."

He examined Flora from top to toe and replied:

"Naturally. Please ladies, follow me. I'll take you down to the vault."

The three of them went to the back of the bank, went through over a large double door and followed in a kind of little wagon trough a kind of an underground roller coaster until they got to a vault. Flora was urged to climb down, get in the vault which opened with her hand touch, and pick as much money as she wanted. Although admired with the fortune lying over there, she got only five golden coins. With a smile of kindness and amusement, her aunt told her to fill up her bag: "we're women and we're going shopping".

Flora realized she had passed a sort of test, because if she weren't the true heir of the fortune, she wouldn't have been able to do that withdrawal. Narcissa's eyes on her had changed, she seemed more relaxed and affectionate as should be a real aunt, Flora thought. After leaving the bank, the ladies seemed old friends laughing and chatting in high-spirit.

They got in just about every shop, while her aunt excitedly told her a number of possibilities of each strange object they saw. She also, repeated all the time that she didn't believe how her niece had survived without all that. At her aunt's unusual happiness, Flora was sure that the English lady had never had a day like that before.

Finally, they got in the wand shop. The store seemed empty. It had its walls covered with shelves with boxes and boxes of identical appearance and labelled with yellow labels whose text was not possible to identify the distance that they were. Flora felt as if she was a child about to live a dream come true. She felt her hands in a cold sweat at the same time she could not undo the smile on her face - and those two things seemed incompatible. "And if no wand work with me? If I don't have enough magic to turn it on?" Thought Flora, looking at her aunt and almost suggesting to return at another time. At this moment, a young, tall, and lanky man, with very clear eyes, black and long hair tied in a ponytail, and wearing on top of his clothes a long cloak and a working apron that had an only pocket full of things, came to serve them. He introduced himself as Petrus Ollivander, and like everyone in the Alley, he already knew Narcissa. Flora introduced herself by her first name and he started to show her wands. He noticed she had never bought a wand before, so he gave her explanations about the material they were made of, their magic core and everything else that might interest her. Flora tested a lot of wands by trying to reproduce in her mind some of the spells she had learned from reading the book the night before. She was not very successful until she found _her_ very wand.

"Willow with a core made of unicorn hairs, swishy, 9 inches long. A great wand for casting spells."

Flora picked it in her hand, and then it flashed silver sparks. Excited, she immediately tested a spell by making the wand box float in the air. She used non-verbal command to do that, as she would be ashamed if she said the words _Wingardium Leviosa_ and no actual effects were produced_._

"It works!"

Then, it was true, thought Flora, they're not just tricks of illusionism, it was real magic... She was caught in her thoughts, admiring the wand in her hand, and its box floating in the air, when came in a very old and hunched man with silver eyes and little hair from among the shelves. He smiled and said:

"Of course it works, my dear...Mrs?"

"Mrs. Flora... Riddle, sir..."

Flora was so excited with the wand that she didn't even notice she had used for the first time her birth surname. It came out very naturally, probably due to the thrill of that moment when she finally was experiencing the sense of being a real witch.

However, the man went uneasy just with the reference to that name. Narcissa came forward and said to him that Flora was from overseas. He seemed to relax, but just a bit. His silver eyes examined Flora that looked back at him with kindness to dissolve that uneasiness.

"The same eyes..." remarked old Ollivander. Then, he looked at Narcissa and asked her:

"Is she your niece?"

Narcissa nodded. He raised his eyebrows and nodded as he commented:

"Very interesting ... Riddle, aren't you?"

Narcissa smiled confirming that she could no longer deny or hide and they paid for the wand. The aunt pulled Flora's hand and took her out of the shop almost hurriedly without mentioning anything else.

Away from the shop, Narcissa talked briefly in a low voice:

"Although everyone knew your parents, our people never understand them well. Many a time your father made use of...how will I put it? Unethical means to get his aims."

Flora understood everything. She should not be proud of her origin as her parents had not been good people, but criminals, perhaps. She felt as if someone had punched in the stomach and was without air for a few moments. Disgusted, she looked at all the shopping bags and money she was carrying. She did not want any dirty money. She almost dropped everything on the pavement. She regretted having said the name Riddle. But it was too late. Apparently someone at the bank, perhaps that witch dressed in green-blue talking to a goblin…someone she hadn't paid much attention to, but that had stopped a moment her conversation when Narcissa mentioned the word "niece" ... Yes, it was her! As Flora noted, the same witch who went from shop to shop gossiping. And right now she was leaving Ollivander with a look of amazement. Within minutes everyone on the street looked at Flora showing a variety of emotions: shock, horror; some of them revered her, or winked and smiled at her. A woman prevented her little child from getting near Flora by crossing the street to the opposite footpath when she walked by.

Her aunt caught her by the hand, saying:

"Come, baby."

She felt her stomach tug, and the world spun in turmoil. In the blink of an eye she was back to her the Malfoy Manor. Her aunt did not tell her anything, walked quickly to order an employee who was tending the garden to fetch the car in London. Flora noted Narcissa's silence, still feeling some nausea and stomach pain, without knowing for sure if it was due the way they had returned or those conditions which made them out in a hurry. For a moment, Flora was out of control, and started screaming at her aunt. Then sorry about her attitude, she lowered her voice and added:

"Please we need to talk."

Instinctively, Flora, afraid of what her aunt would say, touched the wand that was still in its box. However, she knew that it would have little or no use, since she only had memorized some basic spells that were taught to children.

Her aunt took her to a small but very beautiful winter garden. There, she invited her nice to sit in a purple iron swing. Flora couldn't disguise her anxiety, and panted. It was as if she had rushed to get there.

She sat down, and apologized.

"It is me that have to apologize to you", her aunt answered. "You shouldn't have come. Nevertheless, my husband was too excited when he learned that Voldemort had left a daughter. He was curious ... Tom Riddle, better known as Lord Voldemort, had a great aversion to Muggles, the ordinary persons." Narcissa said whispering and looking scared, but with a firm voice. " He saw them as inferior beings that had no reason to exist. What if he knew his daughter was raised like a Muggle? He was very powerful, and put off of his way all those that were against him."

She paused briefly, then continued as if not noticing Flora' startled eyes:

"Yes, very powerful... My sister, her husband, my husband, and many others stood to him and followed him. I've always stood aloof, since I thought I shouldn't poke about these , Lord Voldemort met a wizard that was his match. When this wizard was still a baby, he weakened Voldemort to the point that everyone thought he was dead. This must have been shortly after your birth - I guess, though I hadn't kept up with my sister's pregnancy, as she didn't have acted like she was pregnant ... Well, after the supposed death of Voldemort, his followers, like my sister and her husband went to prison. Lucius managed to deny his involvement and was let free. It seemed everything would be all right ... That boy I told you about is called Harry Potter. Potter grew up just like you, away from our world. He learnt magic when he was 11 at school, Hogwarts, and soon he was persecuted for his fame and his fate, poor thing…"

Narcissa paused briefly once again with her stare lost sometime in the past. Then, as if waking up, she continued:

"Ahn, well… Meanwhile, Voldemort returned even stronger; formed a new army, and freed the Death Eaters, as the followers of Lord Voldemort were called. He was obsessed with the idea of destroying whoever had defeated him, so that he could reassert his power. Our people were divided. Some were very afraid, as a few of them that had openly opposed Lord Voldemort vanished or went crazy. Even so, a group of people who believed they could live peacefully with the Muggles joined Harry Potter. They were the remnants of a group of wizards and witches who had opposed the Lord in the past, and called themselves the Order of the Phoenix. I was already involved in all this, since my husband was a Death Eater. As Voldemort didn't forgive defectors, so I feared for my family. With that I had no choice than to join the Death Eaters..

"Times were hard then. There was a battle at "Hogwarts School, many died on both sides. Finally, Harry Potter and his supporters won. Harry saved Draco's life. I am very grateful to him. My sister and Voldemort, her lover and your father, died in that battle. After the Dark Lord's fall, we were all jailed in Azkaban. My brother-in-law died there. I got a shorter sentence – just two weeks - because I didn't participate directly in it all. Draco also had his sentence reduced – it was just over a month, thanks to the testimony of Harry Potter, who made it clear that my son had had no choice, since he had been forced to take part in it because of Lucius' involvement. Lucius, though, got the longest sentence: fifteen years. He just didn't get a longer sentence for having been accused of cowardice by the other Death Eaters – that said he didn't use to kill, but only to injure or torture his opponents. Lucius showed repentance… However, this time there will be no return, even if I have to fight against it." She concluded firmly.

Flora was shocked, and for the first time in her life she had nothing to say. Her aunt took her breath and went on:

"It was many years ago, but we've lived in peace ever since. Lucius became a quiet, simple, and home loving man. He retired and has avoided going out. But since he learned of you, he got interested in doing "business" again, and started going out every day, as when he was working. Before going to Brazil, he spent a long time travelling, although we don't know where to. He doesn't seem to be sane. I'm terrified."

"Draco is right to be angry with his father. My son owes much to Potter, including his employment in the ministry. He didn't want to accept it at first, because he can't bear being in anybody's debt. Nevertheless, Potter persuaded him into accepting it by saying that someone who's grown up watching his father tinker with the dark arts is better able to identify them than anybody else – Potter said he _needed _my son's help. Therefore, Draco took the job at the ministry. Nevertheless, he thinks Potter placed him there to watch him closely, which wouldn't be necessary, as we want to live in peace with everyone else."

Flora swallowed. The words she wanted to say would not come out. She took a deep breath and tears began to streak down her face. Her shock was too great. She took the hand of her aunt who also got emotional, looked deep in her eyes and said:

"On my part, nothing will disturb your peace."

Flora reasoned that perhaps the best way of preventing such a disaster was to forget it altogether: "I'll renounce the magical world, to protect it from all the evil power latent in me" she thought but had not commented on anything with Narcissa, because she wanted time to think.

They heard Lucius arrive at home. Excitedly, he told them he had called some friends for dinner. The two women exchanged glances. Flora soothed her aunt:

"Quiet down, I think I know what to do."


	5. An apprentice witch

An apprentice witch

They had lunch in silence. Flora's uncle went out just after it. Narcissa proposed a walk in the garden. Flora then went upstairs to store her purchases and change her clothes, because it was really too hot.

She came up to the guest room quickly and left the carrier bag on the bed. She chose a green flowered dress, a light fabric and quickly she pulled it on. She was almost out the door of the room to go downstairs and meet her aunt when she saw the box on the bed in which contained her wand. She hesitated for a moment with her hand on the doorknob and then returned. She sat on the bed, opened the box carefully, her breathing quickened and she felt her heart beating faster and faster while unwrapped the turquoise silk which covered her wand . She swept her fingertips along the full extent of the object, feeling every inch, every vein almost imperceptible on the polished wood. She took the wand at the ends, with her both hands and sniffed it. The smell was good, wood mixed with something she cannot recognize, a new smell, "scent of magic," concluded Flora. Finally, she picked up her wand, then reached over and moved the wrist, admiring the object. She got up and went to Draco's old trunk, took the book of spells and opened on any page and tested the incantation:

'_Wadiwasi!'_

A small piece of crumpled paper was suddenly released into the air toward the bedroom door, at the same time Narcissa came to call Flora to come down and it hit her belly.

'Oh, I'm so sorry, Mrs. Narcissa. It was not my intention.'

Flora said really distressed. Her aunt raised her eyebrow in response and said with a grin on her face:

'Let's see what your wand can do. I noticed in Ollivander that you fooled me when you said that you'd never had any training ...'

Flora felt the heat on cheeks and admitted, a little embarrassed, pointing to the book with her head:

'I was trying ...'

Then she got up and left the room in the company of her aunt to the entrance of the house.

Flora tried to explain herself:

'Well, actually I spent the night reading old books I found in Draco's room. I just tested some spells in the shop. They only worked with my wand.'

'Did you perform non-verbal spells you had just learnt over there?' Her aunt laughed. 'You've really taken after your father. I've never seen anyone learn so fast. Although your father was mean, he was brilliant. You've certainly inherited that from him.'

Flora did not answer, just continued to walk beside her aunt. They descended the steps of the house entrance and went toward the hedges. Behind the edges, besides a small lake with swans, there was a mini-maze made of well trimmed bushes. The slightly dry grass, in Flora's perception, produced music at the touch of rhythmic steps of the two witches. Then she began to pat the wand. In doing so, she looked at her long fingers and said:

'These fingers of a pianist I inherited from my mother, I suppose ...'

'Oh no. Bellatrix's hands were as thin as yours, but her fingers were shorter. Your hands look much like those of your father ...'

Flora tried to ignore the reference to her father, as she wanted to forget her origin; at least while she was having such a good time. She tried to change the subject once they entered the maze of walls whose height did not exceed a yard, so the two women continued to see each other as they took different paths:

'Don't people usually imagine their spells? Do they need to speak them aloud?'

'Yes, they do that when they're learning; and some go through life without being able to do anything whatsoever when their mouths are shut. It's really impressive what you're already getting to do.'

Narcissa said, nodding. Flora was a little embarrassed.

'Aunt, Can I call you like that, can't It?' Narcissa nodded again. 'Could you teach me some "adult" spells? I only found things apparently useless in that book.'

Her aunt suggested she could teach Flora basic defence, and told her about the unforgivable curses, disarming and stunning spells. Flora smiled, amused, as she mentally asked herself, why she would need to know about defence and attack; then she asked her if she could also learn how to tidy up and clean the house, do the dishes, sew and cook through magic ...

'You see; I don't intend to fight other battles but those of everyday life, such as cleaning the house.'

Her aunt smiled and said she could teach Flora all of that, although she thought her niece could have a servant to do these things:

'Or even hire an elf. Despite they're now free; they haven't lost their taste for housework.'

Her niece replied that she preferred doing these household chores alone to make sure they were well done. She believed her aunt would look down on her if she knew about her niece's rather modest life.

So they spent the afternoon having fun, and trying to forget a bit of who they were and what was expected from them. Narcissa taught her various spells and hexes, as they walked and hid behind the bushes, playing like children. Flora's aunt didn't forget to teach her the protective spells, defence and attack. 'To know how to disarm someone has never hurt,' she explained.

Night came and they did not even realize it, since they were very excited: Flora in learning and testing herself, and her aunt in teaching so bright a student. They got surprised when the night lights were turned on.

'Wow! I love magic!'

Her aunt laughed:

'Well, actually they are light sensors and electric lights. Draco installed them to show Scorpius the respect he developed for the Muggles and their inventions. It's very useful indeed. This was a spell that we often forgot to keep on casting as necessary because it became weaker or lasted very little. Dinner! We're late!'

As they walked into the house, Narcissa said, happy:

'I haven't enjoyed myself so since Draco was a kid! Scorpius prefers to play alone, a pity ...'

Flora thanked her aunt saying:

'Thank you, aunt Narcissa, the afternoon was great... I don't have fun like this since I was a kid and played magic with my imaginary friends ...'

Her aunt smiled in response and did not say anything as she knew that children wizards and witches can cast spells while playing.

The two went into the house to get ready for dinner. Flora chose some clothes she had bought that morning; an almost black green dress skin-tight to the waist, long sleeved, and with buttons in its front. She also wore an iridescent green cloak that had a great fit. It was made of a very thin fabric, and had blue sparkles. Wizarding clothes, she thought examining herself in the mirror and approved what she saw: at last she had found a look that matched her inner self. Witchcraft suited her. She smiled as she walked to the dining room, where she stood beside her aunt.


	6. Meeting Draco

Meeting Draco

Mr. Malfoy's friends did not take long to arrive. They looked at Flora with the same reverence and interest as their host. Some walked around the table looking for their seats as if they had been assigned. Mr. Malfoy seemed to introduce her like she was a trophy indeed. Flora forgave her uncle, now that she understood his strange behaviour and knew about his past history.

Flora greeted everyone and heard one by one of their stories. After dinner, she got up, rested her hands on the table, and started talking. They all fell silent.

'Gentlemen, I understand the admiration you all had for my father, and how much you miss him. However, I am afraid I'm going to disappoint you, since I don't intend to take his place.'

At the end of her speech, she barely had time to notice the smile fading on the face of her uncle when Draco got into the room and saw that scene: some long known Death Eaters around the table – who, as his father, managed to be let free; Flora at the centre of it, standing up as if she had just talked or was about to do it. Her very pale face reflected in the dark table, and she was wearing a dark green cloak. It seemed a _déjà vu_ to him. She was Lord Voldemort himself, or his continuity. In an attempt to nip it in the bud, Draco pulled his wand. Flora saw his movement and disarmed him.

Some Death Eaters were paralyzed at such a demonstration, others, pointed their wands at Draco, who also seemed to freeze. Flora walked slowly towards her cousin, never taking her eyes off him, grabbed his wand from the floor, as if bowing to him, gave it back to him, and apologized. Then, she excused herself and left.

She went to her room intending to pack, while her aunt rushed after her, followed by Draco that without understanding anything, demanded explanations.

Flora sent a last message to her husband, asking him to be careful and hide the children until she was back.

At this moment her aunt got in the room and tried to stop her from packing. Flora said she was going back home, but wanted to talk to Draco before.

'I am here.'

Draco walked into the room, still weary. Flora said in explanation:

'I have no intention of replacing my father. Your mother has told me briefly about the horrors he promoted, and she didn't have to detail them for me to know I don't approve of them. I was raised among Muggles and they are not any different from me. I'm just weirder. I just wanted to learn a little more about our people to teach my children. I want to live in peace.'

'Sorry, Flora. Now it's too late. My father's friends won't let you go, not after your demonstration. You are very agile and they all know that what they saw was the result of one-day training. They have realized your potential, and are talking about it very excitedly. They believe it's only a matter of time and of right words before you accept what they believe to be your fate. My mother has explained me everything, and I saw I had got it all wrong. I beg your pardon again.'

'Don't worry. What can I do now?'

'I see no other option but to hide you for a while in a friend's house: or perhaps even better, in a former rival' house if you went home. I guess that they'd follow you'

Draco was a quiet man with few friends or acquaintances. In their most, they were, somehow, related to the former Death Eaters. So, he would have to ask for _others_ to help him. The holidays at Hogwarts came in handy, Draco thought. He decided to take her to Neville Longbottom's home, the professor of Herbology from the school of magic. He believed that if he went to look for Ron Wesley there would be a great argument, because Ron had never forgiven him for his wrong deeds of the past. Harry Potter, he knew, as both of them worked in the ministry, was out of town and his wife, Ginny, would not receive him.


	7. Neville and Hannah

NEVILLE AND HANNAH

Neville lived with his wife Hannah in the small inn upstairs the Leaky Cauldron. The two of them were lying on the sofa of a small room, Hannah nestled the lap of her husband, a big man with a round face of features quiet. She was reading a poetry book and he was reading a novel of his favourite writer, titled The Casual Vacancy. He kept the book afloat while waving his wand and with his free hand he stroked the golden hair of his wife. From time to time one of them read aloud an excerpt to the other, or surprised the other with a tender kiss. There is almost ten years since their marriage and now their lives would change completely, they both knew it and were waiting this change with their hearts filled by good expectations. The sound of someone arriving by Apparition caught their attention. Hannah then stood up and walked slowly to the balcony to see who had come so late at night, Neville followed behind her dragging his slippers and fastening a tattered red robe that had a golden lion embroidered in the front. When they turn on the lights outside, Neville immediately recognized Draco:

"What are you doing here, Draco?" Neville spoke looking annoyed.

Although neither Draco nor Flora were wielding their wands, they didn't have a very friendly reception. Hannah, though, signalled her husband a kindly look as if spoke to him to lower his guard, because she felt there was nothing to fear.

"I need your help, Longbottom." Said Draco, firmly.

Hannah gazing at Flora, said to Neville: "Let them come in, dear. They look tired."

Neville waved them to come up to his apartment. Draco put his arm behind Flora's back, supporting her when they entered the nearly empty pub and saw Neville at the foot of the stairs, waiting for them as seemed bored. Flora tried to keep her head down when passing by people who were eating soup while talking lively at the table in a corner.

They came upstairs quickly and came into Longbotton's apartment. Without many words, Neville pointed a couple of red armchairs. Flora soon sat up, still felt nauseous because of the apparition, but Draco hesitated, then looked at his cousin and imitated her gesture..

Hannah and Neville's house was very different from the Malfoys's as it was decorated with bright and cheerful colors and was full of little souvenirs-like things. There were also many strange plants and curious objects around. Flora felt at easy in there. She smiled and thanked Hannah for the tea she had offered them. Draco started the introduction:

"This is my cousin, Flora."

"Cousin? Whose daughter is she?" Neville broke in suspiciously.

Draco knew that lying was not an option, he needed Longbottom's help and knew that being honest it could facilitate the task..

"Lord Voldemort and Bellatrix Lestrange's." said Draco, firmly looking into Neville's eye.

A stunned silence took over the house. The noise of the wind and the humming of insects were the only sounds that could be heard. Flora reached for Hannah' hands, and asked for forgiveness. She was not sure why she did it, but she sensed those two were some of the persons that suffered horrible things in her parents' hands. It seemed to relieve the tension between them.

Draco told them how they found out about their cousin, as well as his father's and the other Death Eater's intentions. Dumbfounded, both Neville and Hannah listened to Draco when Flora broke:

"Mr. Longbottom, I have spent all my life as a Muggle in Brazil. In that country I have a job and a modest house, besides being married and having three beautiful children. So you see, I'm no longer a child. I came to England with the intention of learning more about our people, That's because up to some days ago I didn't even know such a people existed, so that my husband and I believed we were the only wizarding people on Earth. No wonder! We've never attended special schools as the ones you have here, and the magic books to which we had access were only pseudo-magic ones written by Muggles that could do tricks."

Neville gave her a disapproving look. Flora continued:

"But don't get me wrong, I've loved and have had fun with these tricks and with all that the Muggle world has offered me. I've lived very well in it. Then, although everything I've experienced here is very exciting to me, I want to go home. Nevertheless, I don't want to forget any of the things I learnt over here because they're not pretended. Actually, they're all very real and I want to take part of them back with me. For instance, I want to tell my kids about everything I've seen and heard over here; just as I want them to attend school in your country, if this is what they wish, of course. (I don't really know if they want to develop this facet, since sometimes my daughter, for instance, is embarrassed for being different from the other children. Studying at Hogwarts and living as wizarding people would reinforce this difference). But now I fear that if I go back to Brazil at once as I wish, I will put my family at risk. Sorry for my being so straightforward, Draco, but your father and his friends are crazy. They are in a blind pursuit of someone to play the leader and guide them. However, I'm not this one. I'm not who they think I am, and I won't ever be!"

"How do I know you're speaking the truth?" Asked Neville, looking Flora throughly.

"Honey, she's speaking the truth. Look at her" Spoke Hannah.

Flora rummaged in her things for her mobile. As she had her family's pictures in it, she wanted to show them to Neville. She believed that if he saw them, he wouldn't be suspicious anymore. Unfortunately, though, she had forgotten it in her aunt's house. Then, she remembered her husband hadn't replied her messages yet, which was very odd, and made her fear for them. Worried, she mentioned that to Draco.

"Okay, then, what do you hope us to do?" Neville spoke, still not sure whether or not to believe all that absurd story and, even more, receiving the daughter of those who had caused so much harm both to him and to his wife. Also he could not believe in Draco, however he had demonstrated he was a good person in recent years, contrary to the expectations of all who had known him in his school days.

"I would be grateful if you could hide my cousin for a while, until I can make sure all is well for her to come back home."

" Let's see what we can do. I won't be able to hide you for long, because soon my holiday ends, and I will have to go back to work and to my classes. I'm a Hogwart's teacher." Neville explained looking at Flora.

"Thank you very much," Flora said, bowing her head.

Draco also thanked Neville and took the opportunity to say goodbye. He instructed them to get in touch with him if they needed to.

"Draco, please. Contact my husband. You'd better use e-mail or phone, so he won't be surprised to receive an owl, beyond it should be faster and since wizarding people don't habitually make use of the internet; so your mother told me, then no one should be able to intercept your message. I need to know if they are fine, and please tell my husband not to worry about me. Here you are his email address."

Then she conjured up a piece of paper and a pen and quickly wrote her husband's email address and his phone number.

"Okay, I'll do it."

Draco thought about telling her he had not even thought to send an owl, but decided to say nothing, as they were in a hurry. Seeing Hannah and Neville's surprise, he explained:

"She learns very fast, it's scary. Well, I gotta go."

Draco went to the apartment balcony and Disappeared into the darkness. Hannah went to the balcony, tied her long blonde hair in a knot, rolled up the sleeves of her robe and made a number of protection spells as "the night is too dark." While watching Mrs. Longbottom, Flora realized that she was in the very beginning of a pregnancy. Flora was sad at the thought of being possibly putting another family and another innocent life in danger. All Flora wanted was to go home, and nothing of this to happen. She missed her family; her young children's smiles, their plays ... Tears ran down her face. She just sat in the couch sunk in despair.

Hannah went back inside and tried to calm her down, saying she was among friends.

"You are tired. The inn is full for the holidays, but I have a room for you up here in my house, we just need to make some arrangements. Are you hungry? I can pick up something for you to eat at the bar and I also made pumpkin pudding today."

Flora accepted the pudding as she needed some sugar to feel less miserable. The two women went to a small room close to the main bedroom. It was crammed full of objects, books and papers that gave it the appearance of a place where unused things were kept. With agile movements of her wand Hannah drove the scattered objects to various chests that floated in the air. Then, she finished off by fixing golden name tags in them with information of the chest owner and of what was inside them. She looked like a conductor with a baton. Flora was thrilled:

"I need to train these spells at home, my children's room needs a good tiding up... You're so good at that!"

"I learned from Madam Pince, the school librarian. I don't often tidy things up this way, but it helps a lot sometimes. I spend a lot of time out taking care of business, and Neville spends his time in the school. Yet, every summer we come back here, for it's here that we keep our dreams ... Apparently a lot of mess has piled up along many summers ..."

And while saying that, she finished driving the last objects to the chests, and finally a small single bed came up on the floor and below the floating chests:

"Thank you, Mrs. Longbottom. Pardon me for my making you tidy everything up unexpectedly."

"Call me Hannah. Don't worry, but we're moving; so, I would have to do this any time, actually. Do you need anything else? Would you like to go to bed straight away? Neville should go to bed soon, I usually go later, and if you want, I can stay here with you ..."

"I don't need anything, thank you, just a little company, if it'll not bother you. To be honest, I'm a little scared with this story. Until last week I was just an ordinary woman with something special that I shared just with my family and some few friends. Now all this fuss..."

Flora started to cry again.

Hannah hugged trying to comfort her.

"Hannah, do just you and your husband live here?" Flora asked that as she was worried about involving anyone else in this story.

"My father also does. He is overseeing the Leaky Cauldron for me because I need a rest now." Hannah said that gently stroking her own belly. "My daughter is going to be born in four months from now. We are considering moving to Hogsmeade, a wizarding community next to the school. Over there, she'll be able to grow close to her father. He spends much time in the school, and it's too far from here, 7 hours away up north. I'll help my father remotely from there as I've done since the start of Neville's holidays."

"Are you the owner of the Leaky Cauldron? It's a fantastic place!

Hannah smiled and nodded.

Flora calmed down a bit and thanked Hannah again for what her husband and her were doing. Hannah asked Flora if her guest would like to go to bed. As she replied that she did not want to do it yet, and Hannah did not feel tired, she sat up on bed to talk to Flora, who was also sitting. The two women went on talking. Flora, then, asked Hannah how it was like to be a witch since childhood, and later on go to a wizarding school.

Hannah detailed to Flora how her life had been up to then. Flora got thrilled and also told Hannah about her life. Then it was Hannah's turn to get thrilled.

Time flew, and just when the dawn came and the two of them went to bed. In the morning Neville was friendlier. Flora had a hint that his wife should have calmed him down.

Encouraged and taught by Hannah, Flora used magic to prepare breakfast. While they were eating, there came over the table a flash that took a wolf form and spoke with Draco's voice:

"Flora, you were right. My dad's gone crazy. I don't know how, but he is counting on the help of dementors and other Death Eaters to look for you. Your family is in danger, I'm going to Brazil to protect them; there are dementors there. Look for Harry Potter. Beware of mail. Nothing else is safe."

The cookie that she was eating got stuck in her throat. Her body went limp and she began to slip from her chair. It had been too much for her. Flora fainted and was helped by the Longbottoms.


	8. Bringing the army together

8. Bringing the army together

When she recovered she was lying on the couch. Opening her eyes with difficulty, she saw the couple sitting at the dinner table in front of her. They were talking softly, looking a little nervous, about what they would need to do and on whom they would be able to rely on for help. Flora was dizzy when she rose up from the sofa and approached them, leaning on the table. The table was filled with paper where Neville and Hannah were doing a lot of notes. Neville looked at Flora and he came up with an idea:

'Let's call the DA. We must hurry before the Death Eaters get organized ... Let's meet at my grandmother's house; it'll be safer and it's roomy enough. Could you get our old galleons, Hannah-honey?'

Hannah stood up, walked to the fireplace and quickly returned with a picture frame in her hand, where there were a couple of coins gently stored between the glass and a piece of parchment with a picture of a smiling group of teens. . On the parchment, it could be read "Dumbledore's Army" followed by several names. Their names were there: Neville Longbottom and Hannah Abbott, followed by a dozen other ones. She cast a _Tollerium Charm_ (a spell to remove objects from within other) against the coins within the frame, and the glass seemed to vanish in front of the coins, which got out of it. She caught them and cast another spell which made the coins began to shine in a different way. Then, the address and the time of the meeting appeared in their tail face. It would be in 16 minutes.

'Let's go.'

Neville took Hannah by the hand and reached for Flora who stared blankly at them.

'Let's meet some old friends. For the time being, we don't think it's safe to ask the ministry for help, since it'd be very difficult to explain to them why you need protection. McLaggen, the Minister for Magic, is a foolish bureaucrat. It will be decades before he gets what is going on.' Hannah said, gesturing a little nervous.

'W. .. W. .. W. .. What was that thing?' Flora said pointing to where the bright wolf had appeared.

'Draco's patronus ... Funny, I thought he was incapable of conjuring one. It must be Harry's thing,' assumed Neville. 'But the voice relaying the message was undoubtedly his. No one could do that but Draco.'

'What's this _patronus_? Is Draco okay?'

'I suppose so ...' Neville smiled at her. 'A _Patronus_ is a spell that evokes a positive force that can both be used as a shield against Dementors and can be used the way you saw, to send urgent , I ask you settle down; we have already been in worse situations. We'll help you. But we need to hurry up.'

Flora held out her hand to him. Neville suggested she pick up her wand. She still wasn't used to taking her wand to wherever she went, although it felt to her like an extension of her arm. Anyway, she felt safer with it. The three joined hands and went by Apparition conducted by Neville. It was her third experience with Apparition, one could say it was a success, as this time she closed her eyes in time and, despite having felt her body pressing she did not feel nauseous. This gave to Flora a momentary sense of triumph and she smiled in secret.

Some seconds later, they arrived at the house of Neville's Grandma. She was a tall lady with very white hair, was dressed in a heavy velvet suit, and was in high heels. She was happy to see Hannah. The old lady fondled Hannah belly and talked to the still unborn baby:

'Good morning, great-granddaughter. You'll be as great a witch as your mother.'

'Come on, grandma.' Neville said a little embarrassed. His grandmother pretended not to hear him and said:

'Neville, your friend Ron has just arrived; he is in the living room. He thinks you are going to throw a party or something like that. He's asked me about the other guests ...'

At that moment Hermione, Ginny, Ernie Macmillan, Seamus Finnigam, Dean Thomas, Cho Chang and Luna Lovegood arrived. Flora stood at a corner of the room withdrawn from the others. She was not sure how all those people were going to received her. Besides, she was so concerned about her family that she didn't even notice the arrival of the others. To her relief, everyone was so excited about the meeting that they didn't realize her presence. Neville approached Ginny:

'Where's Harry?'

'He's working, Neville. He was the countryside to help in the arrest of a darkness artefacts smuggler before going to the ministry; he'll have a meeting at 10am with the minister. He usually leaves his galleon at home, so he didn't see your message. I was nearing the Daily Prophet when I felt my pocket warm with the galleon...' She admits a little embarrassed. 'Er ... I think it gives me luck ... Anyway... What was so urgent? I see that your baby hasn't been born yet. Is that meeting simply because you've missed us?'

Ginny looked kindly at Hannah, and then to the Flora, intrigued. Neville took a deep breath and said:

'Friends, please. I need to introduce you someone ...'

Everyone looked at him and then immediately looked to see who would be the person. Flora felt them gaze at her. Then Neville concluded all in a row:

'This is Flora; Draco's cousin; Bellatrix and Voldemort's daughter ...'

And Neville told them what was happening. Everyone looked terrified and listened attentively to the whole story in silence, daring not even look at each other, as they were in shock. They examined Flora in the old and poorly lit room. At first, not so gently as her profile in the dark reminded Bellatrix's. Flora noticed that some of them discreetly placed their hands on the wands, wary. Then, Hannah asked her to come to the light, and they stopped being suspicious of her as then, Flora's delicate features didn't look frightful to anyone.

'Sorry; as we don't choose our parents, my origin is not my fault. Fortunately, I was raised by a great and very loving family in Brazil. I have three children. Draco went over there to help my husband protect them. My husband and I had no training in magic. The little I know, I've learnt in these last days. I'm scared, I want to go home.'

Flora's speech was so confusing, since she was very nervous about the situation and afraid of how people could judge her. This was a completely new feeling for her in which she did not know to cope, because she had never really worried about other people's opinions on her. All of them listened to her in absolute silence again, finally Ron said:

'Then Draco went to Brazil while here things are on fire? It's exactly like him, that coward.'

'Ron, Lucius Malfoy sent dementors behind Flora's family to force her to surrender. This time Draco seems to be doing the right thing. But I think he'll need help. It would be nice to check if everything is going well over there. Perhaps it is best to bring her family closer.'

'No!' Flora cried. 'I'd rather let my children stay away!'

'Flora, it may be easier to protect them here. We could take turns.' Hannah tried to explain.

'For the time being I say no. I believe everything will soon be finished and I'll go back home then. Please hold on a little.' Flora replied, trying calm down herself.  
>Hermione checked her watch and said:<p>

'Oh, no! Harry should now be at the Ministry. At this point he's already being watched by Death Eaters. Lucius knows that we would look for Harry and he should fear it ... He must believe that Harry is the most obvious threat for Flora, as he was for her father ... He'll want to keep him away from her ... I hope they don't hurt him! We must do something quickly!'

Just as Hermione had supposed, Harry was at the ministry and could not go home as every time he was about to leave, an urgent work turned up for him to solve. Therefore, he didn't know what was going on as yet. Neville found it risky to send him an owl or a patron, as they could be intercepted by a witch or wizard. Besides that, as he hadn't gone home, nobody managed to access him through the Internet, as electronic objects did not work where there was high concentration of magic.  
>After a short meeting led by Neville and Hannah, they decided that everything necessary was done to ensure the safety of their families. Then, Ginny and Ron went to the Burrow, their mother's home, to ask them to double their security and don't let out the children that were spending a few days at their grandparents'. The other DA members did the same with their families and friends and then returned, as they had been agreed.<p>

Meanwhile Hermione tried to warn Harry at the ministry. She was attacked by Death Eaters and was forced to return. She got agitated and talking rapidly, almost breathlessly, a little dishevelled. Soon they were all around her, listening attentively:

'We need to send Harry a warning, he doesn't know anything about what's going on, and he'd be attacked. I was attacked on arrival at the ministry. There were a lot of them and they acted discreetly, I had to go back. It's likely the Death Eaters believe he is a threat to Flora just as he was to Voldemort and they don't want us to meet him ... Yeah, I'm sure ... They'll attack him and he won't even know why. Moreover, the city's outskirts are characteristically cold. It means dementors are over there. They are more organized than we could imagine.'

Flora scared, but wanting to help them, dared suggest them something:  
>'Sorry, I'm not prepared for all this in any way. But Mrs. Narcissa Malfoy said that Harry talked to snakes, just like my father. The point is that I can speak to snakes too. We could send him a message through a snake.'<p>

Neville discouraged her. 'Snakes are not like owls. They don't know how to find people. This is out of question. And besides, he should no longer be able to speak to snakes now that Voldemort is dead. There was a link between the two through which they shared that gift.'

Flora looked at him confused as she wanted to help them somehow. Ron interrupted:

'In fact Neville, he's still able to talk to them. We don't understand how come, but we went to the zoo with the kids a few days ago and after twenty years Harry spoke again to a snake.'

'Are you sure, Ron?'

'Yes, I've seen it myself. In the beginning he was apprehensive, but as his scar was as still as it should be, he relaxed. To tell the truth, we ended up having a great time over it. Surely, just Dumbledore would have the answer for this kind of thing, and he wouldn't tell us, of course.' Ron laughed outright.

Flora remembered having felt something strange when passing in front of the Zoo with her aunt on the way to Diagon Alley. Then remembered seeing a happy red-haired family going into the Zoo at that very moment - could it have been Ron, Harry and their families. She opened her mouth to draw a comment on that, but she immediately gave it up as she had remembered her uncle's note about the mark on his forearm. According to him, it had been activated by her presence. She thought it was better to be silent about anything that would suggest some resemblance between her father and her. Those people were being so kind that she had no reason to scare them. Flora felt confident that everything could be coincidence or things enabled by her genes, in which case, she was blameless. So she ventured a guess:

'We could send Harry a snake through an owl, since that according to my aunt there are few wizards or witches that can talk to snakes. Is it too crazy an idea? I don't know how I could help. I need to, though I've caused all this ...'

'Actually, Flora, Lucius Malfoy has. Don't blame yourself. The idea of sending him a snake with a message is so insane - and these are usually the best - that it may work. I'm going to the field to find one.' Neville said, trying to comfort her.

'Take me with you. I can call them.'

By Apparition, Flora went with Neville to the field. This time she could not handle the nausea and she threw up her breakfast. After she recovered, she began to walk through scrubs parched by the summer heat looking for a snake. As opposite to what was happening, she often found snakes in the fields of Brazil, she was giving up her search when she found a water snake under a rock, near a pond and talked to it using Parseltongue:

'_Follow me. I'm not going to hurt you. I just need a favour. I'll bring you back here as soon as possible. You'll be rewarded.'_

The snake consented and coiled around Flora's arm. Flora shuddered to think the animal could be poisonous. Neville watched and soothed her as he lamented that poisonous snakes were getting increasingly rare in the whole UK, which hampered the preparation of many potions. He held out his arm and the two of them went back to the house of Neville's grandmother.

Hannah received them with cups of tea, she seemed to guess that Flora's stomach was empty, and would be starving.

'It's very sweet of your wife, Mr. Longbottom.' Flora said, thanked.  
>'She has this gift of making our lives easier and more enjoyable even when we're under the hardest situations. She's a strong and very gentle warrior. I love my wife.'<br>Flora smiled. She loved when men were able to talk about their feelings. Flora looked at the snake which slithered between her fingers.

'_Well, let's settle this: you will be taken by an owl to a man called Harry Potter. Don't fear the owl, it won't hurt you. When you find him tell him that he is in danger; that his family is already protected, and that he must meet his DA friends at the house of Neville's grandmother as soon as possible. Can you repeat that? Please it's very important.'_

As the snake seemed to get the message messed up, Flora said angrily:

'It doesn't understand! It's such a stupid animal! I'll simplify: _tell to the man to take care and come to the house of Neville's Grandma.'_

Ron sent Harry his mother's owl so that he would recognize it; understand that the message was serious, and that they were well. He also sent Harry his magical galleon, transfigured in a collar for the reptile, hoping that Harry would realize the magic and answer the call, since he did not trust in _slithering_ snakes at all.


	9. The Ambush

The Ambush

Harry Potter, head of the Aurors session in the Ministry of Magic, was having a hard day at work. dementors, who had been banished from the wizarding world and sent to an uninhabited area in the North Pole had escaped from their prison and were bringing terror to wizarding as well as to Muggle communities all over Europe. He had no idea of who could have done this, and believed that the dementors themselves had found a way to escape. He was busy at the phone receiving calls from all over UK as well as exchanging information with other countries, when his mother-in-law's owl came bringing a strange package in its beak. He thought it was something his children had sent to amuse him at work.

He opened the package and a snake leaped on his desk.

"_Man, watch out." _It said.

"_What does that mean?" _He replied, using Parseltongue. The snake, unable to give the rest of the message, since it had forgotten it, got out of its collar and showed it to Harry:

"_Look at this" _It said_._

Harry realized it was a transfigured object and recognized the strange glow coming from the collar. He quickly undid the spell and was able to read on the galleon the words "At the house of Neville's grandmother." Then he realized the dementors, and the DAs' call, were linked - since DA members did not communicate in this way the last twenty years. With that, he got very upset and told a co-worker to stay in his place, explaining that he would personally check a dementors invasion near his house.

As Harry knew, his old friend and brother-in-law Ron had learned Parseltongue by imitating him, he believed that the message through the snake had been his friend's work, who for some reason was in Neville's grandmother's house. So, he went to there straight away.

Hannah met Harry at the gate with a sweet and fraternal smile. Through the window, he saw his wife talking to a stranger with their friends around her. The stranger reminded him of Tom Riddle in his youth, as she had the same feature as a figure that years ago had emerged from a diary. He wielded the old phoenix wand tightly, ready to use it. Hannah, though, quickly held his hand and said:

"Not everything is as it seems, Harry. Calm down, the danger isn't here."

He went in and was introduced to Flora. She explained to him, and asked him to peer it deeply in her eyes so that he could see her memories and tell she was telling the truth, a little uncertain whether it would be worth something, because she was not sure whether he would be or not a _Legilimens_ as she was. Harry, who knew some witches and wizards were able to forge convenient memories, replied that it was not necessary, pretending to believe her - as he preferred to check his friends behaviour and whether everything was really fine, see if anyone had been bewitched - before plunging into the memories of a stranger who claimed to be Voldemort's daughter!

Harry filled the others in about the country situation, and confirmed what they already knew: Lucius Malfoy was spreading chaos in his quest for Flora.

She was terrified by knowing that:

"If the Death Eaters are abusing innocent people just to find me, let's go to them. Let them find me and I'll make them give up. We must do something before uncle Lucius realizes after all this power demonstration that he doesn't need me."

"Flora is right. But we can't let her surrender like that. She hasn't got any combat training technique." Neville pondered, as the others nodded, Harry just watched, still suspicious, examining Flora from head to toe.

"But you can use me as bait," Flora said, desperate "at least to concentrate the Death Eaters and the dementors in a single location so that you can fight them. Let's go to the Malfoy Manor, I know the place and Lucius must be waiting there for me."

"Doesn't it scare you?" Hannah asked, startled.

Flora was surprised by the question, as she neither thought it would be dangerous, just wanted to solve the situation. Then she paused for a moment, by thinking she could not see her children again and it saddened her. But knowing that they had a better chance of continuing to live quietly if she did that, it made her want to proceed:

"Of course it does. But I owe it to everyone. It was me that caused this mess. I only beg you, Hannah, to stay out of all this, because I can't bear the idea of exposing your baby to any danger.

"I will." Hannah smiled, delighted with Flora's concern. "But firstly let me teach you a little more about offense and defence, while the others go and try to get additional help."

Hannah said this looking at the others, waiting for support. Then everyone looked at Harry, as if expecting that he would coordinate. While this seemed an obvious action, since he was head of the Aurors and was the head of Dumbledore's Army, Harry showed not want to take a decision alone. They were no longer children, anyone here could organize a possible ambush. With the sudden attention that everyone gave him and the enormous silence, he choked on the tea that was drinking and said:

"I think Flora's idea can make it work ... Hannah is right: it would be good to have more help and I'm not in favor of putting a defenseless woman in a situation so delicate, though I think very few hours of instruction will not be enough, it's very ..." He made a brief pause, took off his glasses and rubbed his closed eyes with his fingers. "Hermione, could you organize the staff to get more help? I'll stay with Ginny, Neville and Hannah to teach Flora, at least how to block and repel spells.

Quickly, the group split out. So that others left in search of help, Harry, Ginny, Neville and Hannah organized a training room for Flora, exactly as agreed.. Neville's grandmother sat in a rocking chair and smiling all the time, helped them to give Flora some instructions, which were heard and followed in all respect for her ancient knowledge. The others went to seek for help. After hours of training, they made a break and went to the kitchen, as they had forgotten to have lunch. Ginny seemed slight annoyed with the bond that her husband had established with Flora, once their looks showed complicity. The intermission was the chance for Flora to ask Harry about her father. Harry told her a little about Tom Riddle, looking into her eyes.

She saw while he was reciting these facts - by using her legilimency - flashes of a boy in a rather unfriendly room; he showed stolen objects about and said that he could speak to snakes. He also said he could cause pain to others. Another picture followed this one. It showed a young man that while he pointed his wand to Harry, threatened him. A seemingly dead girl could be seen in the background. And finally a third scene followed. Here there was this final confrontation between Harry and Voldemort, when the last one casted a death curse on Harry. She closed her eyes and let the tears shed.

Harry misinterpreted her tears:

"How can you cry for the death of a man that you didn't even know? Moreover after having seen for yourself how bad he was?"

"You can't understand that... I think that perhaps if he'd had a family, the love of his mother, or known a true friendship ... Perhaps he would've been different ..."

"I can't believe what you're saying ... He's been always bad. Didn't, you see his meeting with Dumbledore in the orphanage? I know you _did_." Harry said implying he knew what Flora had seen when had used Legilimency against him without his permission. She nodded, embarrassed:

"See ... I've also had evil drives, and a desire to oppress people with my power as well... But both my personal and professional ethics have stopped me. I can put myself in other people's place and feel what they do. My parents have taught me that. I've been raised surrounded by plenty of love. I owe much to Mr. Lestrange to have sent me away."

She knew though, that nobody would understand her. As she had spent years wondering who would be her true parents, this remark seemed a contradiction. , She had imagined they were poor people, maybe illegal immigrants or war refugees; or else they were kind people, but financially unable to look after her. Perhaps circus performers, since she suspected that she had inherited her gift from such parents. The inheritance theory made sense, since she herself had passed on some magic to her children. Furthermore, her ability seemed a circus trick to the mind of a child. Nevertheless, she had also considered the possibility of her gift being due to some genetic mutation, once her parents-in-law had nothing of magic and her husband, Felipe, was _special _although his parents did not share the gift of magic with him_. _

Anyway, all she knew was that she had been taken from England when she was less than a month old. Then she had never thought of herself as a witch, except when she was kidding. It was like that until that day she met Mr. Lucius Malfoy. Then she understood she was a real witch. Her parents had been a wizard and a witch. However, both of them had been mean; it could not be denied. Therefore, in her mind, she thanked once again Mr Lestrange to have had her sent to a Brazilian family. Maybe if like her father, she had grown up in an orphanage where her 'witchness' was misunderstood, she would have become as mean as him ... Why did not anybody understand her? Well, if nobody understood her, they did not hate her either. Harry had told her that Lord Voldemort had killed his parents and had tried to kill Harry more than once. Bellatrix Lestrange had killed her godfather, and tortured Neville's parents into madness. Both Voldemort and Bellatrix had killed and sent to death many innocent people. Hannah's mother had been one of them. Although Flora was not proud of her parents, she felt some affection for them. She was sorry because her mother Bellatrix and her father Tom - who finally had a face and a name - had not had the same opportunity as her to learn the right values. And deep down, she was grateful because they had given her the _gift_ of her being a witch ̶ she did not know whether _gift_ was the right word for it, but it had been the only one that had occurred to her. And she finally had found her place, and no longer needed to pretend normality, or to fit in. That was it.

The It was almost dusk when the others returned home with a large group of Aurors and friends warning them that all was set. Harry discussed the last details with Flora:

"For you to help us, you must put on a convincing act. So, it is very important that you are as theatrical as possible. Your father used to speak in a slow and pitched voice, and had exaggerated but elegant gestures because he _needed_ to look _like_ a _lord. Y_ou must try to act like him. He also had an upright and proud gait, and never looked at the floor. Last of all, he called his followers by touching his wand in the mark they had magically tattooed on their forearm."

"Theatre is one of my specialties. My father had a pet snake, didn't he? Aunt Narcissa told me. Where is the snake I sent you with the message? I'll take it with me. It'll help me to play the character."

"Yes, but Nagini was a part of him rather than a pet... Er... Perhaps one day I'll explain you the whole story. Are you sure you want to go on with it?"

"Yes, indeed."

Then she threw an arrogant look, and burst out in a harsh laughter that reminded the others of Bellatrix. Harry took a step back. For a moment he suspected he had given too much power to the wrong person; someone quite unknown to him.

"Haven't I said I was good at drama? I've almost scared myself." She smiled.

After that, she changed the tone of her voice back to normal and completed:

"There is nothing to fear. Our plan is going to work. All I want is to go back in peace to my family."

Flora together with the others reviewed their plan. They would go to the Malfoy Manor on broomsticks, and split up in two groups over there. While one of them herded the dementors back to the North Pole, the other one would lay siege to the house and attacked it. With that the Death Eaters would surrender. After that, Harry and Flora would meet Lucius. Harry would tell the DA's members through the galleon the right time for them to start their action. They would leave before Flora to make way for her. Hannah said:

"Good luck, Flora. You're so brave. You don't even look like a Slytherin. If you had attended Hogwarts, you would certainly have belonged to Gryffindor."

Flora did not understand that, but she left smiling. It was impossible not to love Hannah.


	10. The Malfoy Manor breakin

THE MALFOY MANOR BREAK-IN

Flora and Harry reached the main gates of the Manor by Apparition, Harry was hidden under his invisibility cloak. Flora almost threw up, although she would not be able to tell whether it was due to her anxiety or to the backlash in the stomach she felt at every Apparition – she suspected she would never get used to it. As they walked forward, the gates opened up to them and they walked with their wands in hand through an alley flanked by carefully trimmed hedges. Harry's cloak swept the ground and together with the evening breeze made the leaves rustle. Flora's uncle seemed to be waiting for them in the driveway. He looked more insane than before.

"You've come back, as I had anticipated. I've always known you would."

"I can't escape my destiny." Said Flora, firmly. "Call the others ... How did my father do it?".

Lucius reached out and showed her his black mark. He went to touch it, but Flora held his hand and did it herself. She felt something strange, a non-visible quiver of the sort, run through his arm. It was as if a lot of magic ran through his veins and went out through his wand hand. She thought Lucius must have felt some pain as he trembled a little with her wand touch. Right away the mark became more intense, Flora was somewhat impressed with all those black shapes that almost immediately began to appear in the air: one by one Voldemort's followers started to come. After all of them had arrived, Flora gave them her back, to disguise her amazement and slowly marched to the dining room where she waited for them.

This time, she sat at the head of the table and waited for them while playing with the snake between her fingers. Harry stood right behind her, just in case….

She waited till all of them had sat down. Lucius sat by her side. Narcissa got in the room and was startled by her presence. Flora commanded her to sit by her left. Resigned, her aunt did as ordered, but when she got near Flora she whispered:

"Stupid me that believed you ... Power corrupts even those who seem to have a good heart. My son is taking risks for your sake!

Flora kindly held her aunt by the arm and whispered:

"I've always honoured my word."

She thought her remark would reassure her aunt. However, what she said and the strange words she chose to say it frightened Narcissa even more, "Everything about her reminds me of the Dark Lord. How could I have been so foolish?" Thought Narcissa. Flora turned to the other Death Eaters and their sons and daughters that were either sitting at the crowded table or standing around it. All of them looked at her with great attention. She spoke slowly, with the serenity of one that is saying a prophecy:

"It took me some time to accept my fate. But now I know my father left an unclosed work, which I intend to finish. Unfortunately, the world is taken by stupid and dumb Muggles. They must know their place. I understand that I am not like Lord Voldemort, my father. He failed to recognize your value., He was weak so that he was killed by a 17 years-old boy..." At that, she pretended a face of contempt slight wrinkling her nose as if disgusted by something. "I have come to win; whoever is next to me will be a winner as well."

She smiled. Some of them whispered. She glared at them:

"Is there something I should know? What did you do in my absence?"

A skinny Death Eater on her right trying to show himself as servant, said:

"Well, on Lucius' command, my lady, we brought Draco back and..."

"Lucius's command…"

She repeated as turned to her uncle with a scolding look. He tried to explain:

"My son has proved to be a traitor, trying to avoid the establishment of the natural order of things, an order which will prevail with your return."

Without hesitation, Flora plunged into his eyes. In horror, she saw it was not just Draco that Mr. Malfoy had brought to England, but her family as well. They were all locked in the cellar. Both Draco, and Felipe, her husband, had been tortured by the Cruciatus Curse to give away her whereabouts. She could also see that Mr. Malfoy had lied, as he was not interested in submitting to her, but in subduing her to use her powers to take over the wizarding world. She had seen that in the back of his sub-consciousness. She said that to Harry through parseltongue by pretending to sing a strange lullaby to the snake that was in her hand:

"_Make my uncle forget what I've just seen in his memories._ _We need to rethink our attack._ _Draco and my family are being tortured in the cellar._ _There are other Death Eaters there that will come as soon as we begin the raid._ _We are outnumbered."_

Harry whispered in her ear, while Flora kept talking nonsense words in Parseltongue so no one noticed any strange noise coming from their conversation:

"_It's done._ _Your_ _uncle has forgotten what you've seen in his memories I'm trying to send the DAs a message through the galleon, but it's not working, they simply don't reply._ _I think the house is under some sort of protection._ _As we are late, they will think we got caught and they will break in._ _I know Ginny, she won't be able to wait any longer."_

"_Can you keep Draco from feeling the effect of the Cruciatus if I cast the curse?_ _I'll call him, and tell him to pretend his suffering._ _We must attract the other Death Eaters up here._ _Then we will have a chance of not being ambushed."_

"_Yes, of course._ It s_ounds like a good idea._ _Also use the Levicorpus I taught you._ _Shake him in the air; it always causes a 'good' impression."_

Flora nodded, and disguised she had been talking to an invisible person by combing her hair with her hands. Then she asked the bald Death Eater who had told her about Draco, noticing that he inflated his chest in satisfaction:

"Where is Draco?"

Mr. Malfoy, demonstrating uncomfortable with Flora's sudden preference by another Death Eater, stood up and sent Goyle for him. To Flora's surprise, Goyle fetched not only Draco, but her husband too. Some Death Eaters that were watching from the cellar followed him hoping to see some demonstration of power, since Lucius had spread the word about his niece's ability. Harry tried to Apparate to the cellar. But like twenty years before when he was imprisoned in that same cellar, it was not possible as it was shielded. Then he went to the staircase to walk down it. However, he remembered he had forgotten to protect Draco due to his worry about releasing Flora's children that were unprotected.

Then, he went back and whispered in Draco's ear what he was about to do, and casted a shield spell that also protected Flora's husband. Draco blinked to Felipe hinting him.

Flora announced that she would personally torture the 'traitors who had tried to divert her from her fate in order to keep her from assuming the power meant to her' would. Her husband looked at her as if he did not recognize her. That helped a lot in the act she was putting on. Waving her wand twice, she managed to unite Draco and Felipe by their right feet and suspend them upside down by an imaginary rope. She shook them like a grandfather clock pendulum, while she laughed too loud - a forced and nervous laugh, since she felt guilty about doing jinx on them. Then she move her wand back and asked the "audience" - which filled their eyes in wonder, as if facing the eighth wonder of the world:

"Shall I manage cursing the Cruciatus both of them at the same time?"

Her eyes widened and forced herself to look more insane way she could:

_"Crucio!"_

For a moment she was nearly unmasked, because by seeing her husband and her cousin writhing in pain on the floor, she felt a strong urge in dropping her wand running to help them, but this time Harry took her hand and said:

"They are protected, be quiet."

Flora, feeling backed by Harry's information, repeated the curse. Narcissa, with tears in her eyes and wand pointing Flora's chest, screamed for her to stop. Flora pretended to ignore her aunt's pledge, while Lucius grabbed behind his wife. But because her cry was too loud, the doors and windows burst open: Ginny and the others broke in. Then, they had no other option than to start battling. Flashes of coloured light start coming from everywhere. In the middle of the turmoil, Flora was momentarily mesmerized watching Ron who Disapparated taking Draco and Felipe with him away from the house. As soon as she had assimilated his departure, Ron returned right away to help in the fight; he had left the two men in a safe place.

Untrained for combat, Flora mixed up the spells and made water shed from her wand. This wetted some combatants on both sides. The unusual scene came in handy, and while everybody was distracted by it, Harry held five Death Eaters at once. He did it as he was bending down dodging from a Cruciatus Curse, Flora was amazed with his agility and almost fell when the ground beneath her feet began to crumble.

One by one of the Death Eaters were being stunned, but not without fighting On the other hand, some Death Eaters, unable to understand Flora's betrayal, spared her from their attacks, which helped her to get time to cast some spells against them.

Hermione went to the cellar. She surprised two Death Eaters that kept guard over it and knocked them out. She took the kids to her parents-in-law's. As she expected, Arthur, her father-in-law, and George, her brother-in-law, asked what was happening. After her explanation they complained for having been left out of the fun, and begged to come with her to the Malfoys'. Some time and a lot of broken furniture later, the Death Eaters were rendered.

As Narcissa kept her husband under her wand; tears streaked down her stern face.

"Where is Draco? What have you done to him?"

"He's outside, Mrs. Malfoy. He's fine."

With the news brought by Ron she relaxed and dropped her guard. It was then that Lucius tried to steal her wand. Nevertheless, Neville, who had just arrived, petrified him at once and also declared that:

"The dementors are being taken back to the north by the Aurors. McLaggen is already aware of what has happened and thanks you, Harry. He also wonders if you can lead some additional Aurors to herd the remaining dementors up north to their reserve."

While her uncle was being arrested, Flora supported her aunt. Harry, as the head of the Aurors, said:

"Mrs. Malfoy, I'm sorry. Your husband isn't in his right mind. I don't mean that because he longed for Voldemort's return in the figure of his daughter, but rather because he tortured his own son for this. He will be taken to St. Mungo's Hospital for evaluation. But that doesn't mean he's coming home soon. He either shall be arrested or stay at the hospital."

"I understand that, thank you. I know Lucius isn't well at all. I'd realized this long ago. But I didn't believe he'd do any harm to anyone. How wrong I was! I'm so sorry for Draco and Flora!"

Then Ron brought Draco and Flora's husband back to the house.

"Felipe, my love! I didn't mean to scare you. Please forgive me."

Flora hugged and kissed lingeringly her husband. Draco turned to Harry:

"I owe you this one.'

Ron shook his head:

"It's me that lifts him safely away from the hustle and it's Harry that gets the fame ...

George approached and patted Ron on his head:

"Poor Little Ronny. Let's go home for you to cry on mommy's lap... By the way, Angelina must be going crazy with all her nephews besides Flora's children. They must be gulping down Grandma Weasley cookies."

"My children! I need to see them." Yelled Flora, as if waking from a trance.

Ginny quickly went to fetch them. They went back to the house through the Floo Network.

Flora and Felipe greeted their children with lots of hugs and kisses. Later on, after everybody else had gone, Flora and Felipe said they were going to a hotel with their children. Narcissa, though, looked at Flora's children with the sweet expression of a grandmother and asked that they stayed, so she would have something good to fill up her mind. She also asked Draco to bring Scorpius to spend the last days of his holidays with her, so he would not feel so alone and would meet his next-of-kin cousins. He accepted his mother request and promised he would return the next day with his son. Narcissa, Flora, Felipe and the kids go to the upstairs. The children were talking loud, filled with excitement and curiosity to know how it was a real wizarding battle. For respect her aunt, Flora tried to settle down her kids, promising them to tell everything then. She left her children and husband in the guest room and went along with Narcissa to her room, which embraced Flora and recommended her to rest, for it was a long battling day and they would tidy up the whole mess the next day.


	11. A wizarding Family

Flora and her family spent very pleasant days with the Malfoys experiencing the magical world. The children learned to fly on broomsticks and to play Quidditch with their cousin Scorpius. The events of the former days seemed a collective nightmare, except for the absence of Mr. Malfoy that could be remembered at every moment only by the sad shade on Narcissa's eyes.

After a few days, Ricardo and Lia, Flora's eldest children (13 and 11 respectively), were in the backyard, merrily playing Quidditch with Scorpius and Yan, a two against two game, when they saw the arrival of a barn owl that made a loop in midair to follow them up the next goalhoops at the right of the Malfoy Manor. Ricardo immediately left the game and dropped his broom. The owl stretched her leg to offer him the letter. To his surprised that owl had not been mistaken, because his and Lia's name were there in very ink green. It was a yellow envelope sealed with red wax, and stamped with the Hogwarts crest. He shouted to his sister, who was still on her broom and flew in circles over him with curiosity

"Lia, look here: it is for us!"

Lia flew toward him, but he rode his broom and flew away:

"Try to get it!"

"Ricardo, come on! Let's just see what is written!"

Lia cried, laughing and flying very fast toward him. Yan and Scorpius were nonstop laughing and just watched them. No long after she reach him, which he pretended to be allowed:

"Ricardo, we shall open to see what is it. From who is it?"

"Who, Lia? Hogwarts of course! Look here!"

Ricardo said excitedly, showing the crest of the school while they dismounted, dropping the brooms on the floor anyway, as they were curious to read the letter. Scorpius and Yan came to view it too. The four heads together, almost breathless, due to the emotion as well to the game. Ricardo was trembling a little, then Lia took the letter from his hands and read aloud:

_Ricardo and Lia,_

_With great pleasure we invite you and your family to visit our school._

_Get in touch with prof. Longbottom and he will lead you here._

_You are expected at 10am on the 13th of August,._

_Sincerely, _

_Professor Minerva McGonagall_

_Headmistress of _

_Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry_

They just finished reading it and ran into the house, shouting.

"Mooooooooooooooom! Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaad!"

Narcissa, Flora, Felipe, Draco and Astoria were talking in the living room. Astoria was telling them about her work at St. Mungo's when they were surprised by the four children which burst running into the living room. Lia gave the letter to her mother:

"Look, a letter from Hogwarts, mom!"

"Professor McGonagall, Headmistress of Hogwarts, is inviting us to go there to know the school, Aug. 13."

Said Flora, smiling, reading and rereading the letter, very happy.

Everyone was very excited about the invitation. Even Draco that hardly ever smiled, Happily he declared that he would try to visit his old school with them. The appointment was scheduled for two days later.

Mrs. Malfoy sent an owl to Neville, telling him about the letter and inviting him for tea. Neville replied that he would not be able to come for tea, because he was busy with the final preparations before the school next term start. However, he ensured her he would be there at 9:30 am on the day set by Prof. McGonagall.

Then, as the Hogwarts Express would take too long to get to the school, Neville asked Draco to get a Portkey in order to quickly take everyone to Hogsmeade. And so he did. On the 13th, all of them were very excited. The kids woke early and were ready three hours before Longbottom's arrival. Draco also met them, as Scorpius and he were going to go with them. "To have a representative of Slytherin there," he said.

After breakfast, everyone went to the front of the house, waiting for Neville, who arrived with his wife not even a minute late. Hannah hugged Flora kindly, even before them doing the introductions and greetings. Neville asked Draco:

"Did you bring the Portkey?"

Draco nodded and handed him a rusty bicycle handlebar, without saying anything. They were not yet accustomed to this sudden approach between them, after years of animosity. Draco gave everyone instructions, before they said farewell to Narcissa and stood around the object. A few seconds after leaving the floor of the Malfoy Manor, they reached Hogsmeade's ground.

In Hogsmeade they were awaited by a carriage without pulling animals. Neville explained to them it was pulled by a Thestral, an animal that could be seen only by those that had already witnessed someone's death. At that, Flora was glad for not being able to see it. They sat in the carriage, which was quickly and magically resized by Hannah, so that everyone was well accommodated. And then the carriage went towards an unpaved road with a large castle at its end.

When they arrived at Hogwarts, Flora's family was amazed with the castle. Yan, Flora's youngest son, stated looking up to the top of the tallest tower:

"The castle is so big it barely fits in my eyes, Mommy!"

They all smiled:

"It's really big, honey." Replied Flora.

They were greeted by an old witch whose totally silver hair was stuck in a bun. She was dressed in green, wore square glasses, and was accompanied by a man a little younger than her. Despite his somewhat wild looks, he was much taller than all the men Flora knew, and his hair and beard were long and grey, he looked nice and friendly:

"Good morning, welcome to the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, I'm Minerva McGonagall and this is Rubeus Hagrid, our Care of Magical Creatures teacher. Let us come in. The others are waiting."

"Others?" Flora asked.

"Well, some of Professor Longbottom's friends. They have all met you recently during the incident in the Malfoy Manor. They insisted on being here now to show their gratitude for your behaviour." Replied McGonagall, grinning at Flora.

Professor McGonagall took them to the school main hall, where they met Ginny, Harry, Hermione, Ron and the other DA members. They all welcomed Flora's family with a smile. Professor McGonagall invited them to take their places around one of the four long tables that were in the hall.

Lia was walking, staring marvelled at the ceiling bewitched to look like the blue sky outside, when she hit against the table. Embarrassed, she looked around to see if anyone had noticed it, only Professor Minerva looked at her and gave her a smile, like someone saying not to worry about that.

The headmistress did a little speech about the school, its founders and its principles, and then she said to Flora and her husband:

"We cannot offer you a place at the school, once you have already passed the entry age. Nevertheless, we invite you to go through a little ritual common to all of our students that also go through it when they get here to start their lives as true witches and wizards: the sorting of houses."

Then she invited Felipe to sit on a small stool in front of everyone. He did not quite fit it as it was too small for him. Anyway, she took an old and battered hat and put it on his head. The hat had barely touched his head when it proclaimed aloud:

"Ravenclaw!"

Everyone clapped.

Then it was Flora's turn. As she was anxious, she was panting a little:

The hat seemed to be pondering in a whisper that only she could hear:

"Difficult, very difficult: you have a great heart, Hufflepuff would be well suited, but I sense strong Slytherin blood in your veins. Your unusual intelligence would take you to Ravenclaw. However, all this courage, my dear, surely takes you to... "

"Gryffindor!"

Everyone clapped. Flora blushed. She did not know what all this meant, but she was happy to be there.

"So, the Slytherin heir belongs to Gryffindor? Perhaps we should stop with this sorting. I think Gryffindor and Slytherin have just called it quits" McGonagall gleefully said.

Everyone laughed. They went back to the table and a wonderful lunch was magically served on it.

Although Flora and Felipe could not attend the school anymore, Professor McGonagall told them that the same did not apply for their children. The kids could attend it from September 1st if their parents agreed, although Ricardo, in spite of his age, would have to start with Lia.

"Please mom! Please dad!" Lia and Ricardo begged their parents in unison.

"I want to come as well!" Said Yan.

Then Draco kindly explained to Yan:

"Yan, wizarding schooling begins at 11. So, you'd have to wait two more years... If your parents allowed you to come, of course.

They all tuned their pleading eyes to Flora and Felipe, who said:

"I don't know, to live so far from home ..."

"You could move to Hogsmeade. Next to the house Neville and I bought, there's an empty one. Besides, as the wizarding people are getting closer to the Muggles, it needs some modernization. So, computer stores and computing courses are more and more necessary. You could open the first ones in our world. What do you think of that?"

"It could be a good idea. We're going to talk and see what is best for the family." Felipe pondered.

Flora started thinking about early retirement. How to carry on working as a psychologist knowing that what she'd always done to make her clients happier was to use Legilimency and Confundus Charm, as well as Obbliviate (Memory Charm) to firstly delete their unwanted memories and then print new ones in their minds? Later on, she shared that thought with her husband.

They spent the rest of the day visiting the castle and listening about its marvellous stories. The children and adults also had the opportunity to play in the Quidditch pitch a little more, Harry, Draco and the other were recalling the old days of school, while Felipe and his children had fun experiencing the thrill of playing in an official field for the first time. Meanwhile, Flora stayed with McGonagall, watching them. The two of them talked about the school and Flora told the Scottish professor about life in Brazil. In the evening, they went back to the Malfoy Manor. The children had a sleep full of dreams that seemed to predict what would happen next morning.

During the breakfast, Felipe began to speak:

"Your mother and I talked a lot and decided to ..."

It was when a brown owl came in fluttering into the room and dropped two letters from Hogwarts on the table. Felipe picked them up and delivered them to their receivers:

"Well: Lia and Ricardo, you are going to Hogwarts."

****** I'm waiting for comments! Non-registered readers are allowed to comment my fanfictions!(but I can't reply you if I don't know your email address) ******

**** And its sequel is already in the web: search for Flora Riddle 2 and Flora Riddle 3****


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